Fairy Tail: Dragon King
by EnderDragneel
Summary: X812. 20 years after Zeref and Acnologia were defeated. Two fateful encounters. Two old friends. One guild. Many new adventures. Hisoka wanders the continents of Ishgar & Alakitasia with his cat, Henri, while Akane lives in fear on a distant continent with his cat, Thomas. Both lives change forever when they each meet some Fairy Tail mages. Rated T for tragic injuries and language.
1. A New Adventure: part 1

_Fiore, year X812_

 _This is a nation on the continent of Ishgar, containing nearly 19 million people. Wizardry is a prominent part of the country's social structure. They even have an annual event for wizardry known as the Grand Magic Games, where various wizard guilds compete to be the number one guild in Fiore._

 _And, in a certain city known as Magnolia, there lies a famous, or perhaps infamous guild, which can be a little too rowdy at times, but is a hero to the kingdom, having led in the defeat of the black wizard Zeref and the dragon Acnologia twenty years ago. Furthermore, many legends were born from that guild before that, and many legends will continue to be born from it in the future._

 _The guild's name is Fairy Tail._

 _But while that is where many adventures will happen, it is not where our story begins._

 _Our story begins in Vistarion, the capital city of the Alvarez Empire, located on the continent of Alakitasia._

* * *

Hisoka looked around in awe.

"Amazing," he said.

"Like it?"

Hisoka looked at Henri and grinned. "You bet I do," he replied. "I don't even recognize the place!"

His cat companion flew up to where he was standing on top of the cathedral. "I see the city's gotten bigger since we were last here," she commented.

"That's certainly an understatement!" Hisoka looked up at the sky. "Where on Earthland did the floating islands come from?"

"Probably an abundance of ethernanos and creation wizards," Henri explained. "Give a human enough resources, and I guarantee they'll build something just because they think it looks cool. I heard that they even built underground."

"Seriously?"

"I'm not certain, but I'm going to bet all of that mining is how they ended up with the stone and lacrima to build the islands."

"Makes sense." Hisoka looked back up at the islands. He could see that one of them was made of solid ice. "What doesn't make sense is how they keep that one from melting."

"Or why."

Hisoka jumped down from the steeple. "Nonetheless," his feet hit the ground, and he crouched and extended one arm to absorb the impact, "the best part is that this city smells better than it did last time. In fact, it smells better than most cities, even though it's the biggest one we've ever been to."

"Probably advanced sanitation." Henri glided down to the ground, and her white feathered wings dematerialized. "I hear they expanded the library, too."

Hisoka whipped his head around towards the location of the library, and his jaw dropped at the sight of one of the largest buildings he had ever seen. "H-How did I not notice that?!"

"You have quite the ability to not notice things. I've heard it's the biggest library in the world."

"It would certainly seem so." Hisoka continued to stand there in awe. "That thing's bigger than the royal castle!"

"And I've heard it now contains several copies of every book ever written."

"It certainly would seem so. If there's any more to read about Fairy Tail, it's in there!"

"I simply do not understand your obsession with that guild."

"It's an amazing guild!"

"Yes. Amazingly stupid."

"It's not stupid," Hisoka complained. "They win the Grand Magic Games nine times out of ten when they participate, and they've got quite a large number of dragonslayers."

"And most of the rewards that they make are used to pay for property damage on the job"

"They also have some exceeds," Hisoka added.

Henri looked at him. "I don't care."

Hisoka raised an eyebrow at his friend's antisocial attitude. "We both know that's not true."

"I'm pretty sure it is," Henri argued.

"Everyone wants to meet another of their own kind." Hisoka's tone changed from excited to gentle. "Not all the time, certainly, but eventually, you start to feel alone."

Henri pouted, then changed the subject. "Anyway, shouldn't we be finding a place to stay before you wander off to explore?"

"Wha – yes!" Hisoka snapped out of his dazed staring at the library. "Definitely. We should. Uh…" His mind wandered for a brief moment. "Let's find a place!" he suddenly declared.

Henri sighed. "Can't your mind wander a little more quietly?"

* * *

"We'd like to rent a room."

The manager stared at Hisoka in confusion.

"'We'?"

Hisoka pointed down.

The hotel manager stared over the desk at Henri. "Oh!" she exclaimed, noticing the gray cat. "I'm sorry. I didn't see you there. Uh," she sat back down and repositioned her cat-eye glasses. "What kind of room would you like?"

"Just something roomy," Henri replied, hopping up on the counter. "With two beds."

"Actually," Hisoka interjected, "I'd just like a floor mattress."

Henri rolled her eyes. "One bed and one floor mattress, then."

"Our normal rooms come with two twin-size beds by default," the manager replied. "But I can add a floor mattress for just a bit extra."

"That'll do," Henri affirmed. "How much will that be?"

The manager pulled out a rectangular lacrima and touched a few buttons on it. Then she looked back up at them. "40 suishou for setting up the mattress, plus 650 suishou per night."

"Uh…" Hisoka pulled out a wallet and fumbled through it, then looked up at the manager. "We only have jewel."

"We've spent the past five years in Fiore," Henri explained. "Therefore, we currently only have Fiorean currency."

"Ah. No problem," the manager reassured them. "This hotel considers seven jewel to equal two suishou."

"That's a bit much," Hisoka commented.

"Just be glad they accept jewel," Henri asserted. "We can't say that for most of the places in this city."

"140 jewel for setup, and 2,225 jewel per night."

"Right," Hisoka responded to the manager's recalculation and pulled some money out of his wallet. He then handed it to the manager. Then he looked back in his wallet. "We'll want to set up shop fairly soon if we want to keep our lodging," Hisoka hinted.

"Agreed," Henri admitted. "Let's go do that after we check out our room."

The manager handed them a room key. "The room number is written on the key. Have a nice stay!"

* * *

Hisoka stood in the doorway, taking in the smell.

"Smells interesting?" suggested Henri.

"It does." Hisoka walked into the room, dropped his baggage on the floor, and collapsed on the floor mattress.

"Going to take a rest?"

"We haven't slept in three days," Hisoka reasoned, "and I need more sleep than most people. Just a few hours ago I thought I saw floating islands in the city." He closed his eyes and let himself slip into unconsciousness, vaguely aware of Henri correcting him about something.

* * *

"Sorry for sleeping for so long."

Hisoka and Henri were sitting in the stall that Henri had set up on her own.

"Don't apologize to me," Henri advised. "Apologize to the city folk who were looking forward to street performances two days ago."

"I'm a bit groggy at the moment," Hisoka complained. "Can I at least wait a few hours and help you sell fish?"

"You are helping me sell fish," Henri notified, "by performing near the stall. You're the one who decided he wanted to perform. For now, you're stuck with it."

Hisoka sighed, then got up, stretched, and walked out into the street. He set a bucket down on the cobblestone, took a moment to reassert his focus, and then concentrated on the nearby fountain, causing some of the water to rapidly swirl out and circle around him. He started by making it form letters in the air, spelling out: _Feel free to play music, and I will perform with it_. Then he started the performance, leaping up in the air and allowing the water to swirl around him in spectacular patterns. Then somebody started to play the accordion. Hisoka dropped to the ground, paused, got a feel for the rhythm, and then started performing in time with the fast-paced jig, letting the water trail around him in a rhythm.

Eventually, Hisoka stopped dancing, and the water hovered above his head. He waited as his audience applauded him. Then, as the clapping died down, somebody decided to play a flute. Hisoka got a hang of the slow, soft rhythm, and began to tell a story with moving shapes. It was a story of a farm boy who vowed to find his long lost brother, and went through many hardships to find him. The audience cheered as Hisoka ended the story with a happy reunion and the brothers returning to the farm together. Hisoka then ended the show by swirling the water into a ball, then having it burst into an omnidirectional spray, soaking those who were willing to stand close enough. As the audience left, Hisoka walked over to the bucket that he had set on the ground earlier, and grinned at the amount of money that had been thrown into it. He then walked over to the fish stall where Henri was still selling fish, and set the bucket down next to her.

"Impressive," Henri remarked.

"So, uh…"

"Yes, you can go explore the library."

Hisoka smiled and headed for the massive building at a steady jog.

* * *

"Excuse me," Hisoka greeted.

The librarian looked up.

"I'd like to know where your books about the mage guild Fairy Tail are," Hisoka inquired.

"Hold on," the librarian replied. He reached under the desk and pulled out a multilevel map. He handed it to Hisoka. "Our books about foreign wizard guilds are here." He pointed out a spot on the second floor.

"Thanks," Hisoka beamed. He then headed for the location that the librarian had indicated to him.

When he got there, he searched for a book on Fairy Tail that he hadn't read, found one, pulled it out, and began reading it.

"Interesting," he said to himself. "All of the founding masters were taught by Zeref?"

He kept reading.

"When the opportunity arises," Hisoka promised, "I will join this guild."

* * *

"Um, excuse me, sir."

Hisoka woke with a start and looked up at the librarian.

"The library's closed now," the librarian informed him. "Please either show me a pass or leave the building."

"A pass?"

"For anyone who wishes to stay after hours," the librarian explained. "Sometimes, people explain how important it is that they continue to research, and we give them a special pass to stay after hours."

"But what if they really can't tell anyone?"

"We keep all secrets here," the librarian continued. "We even undergo anti-interrogation training in case your enemies come along."

"This library is more interesting than I thought," Hisoka commented.

"And for extra protection, we have rune barriers that prevent the use of magic by any entities other than books, as well as making librarians forget the secrets when we leave."

"Interesting."

"So do you have a pass?"

"No."

"Then have a nice evening."

Hisoka walked toward the exit and then headed back to the hotel.

* * *

Hisoka left the fish stand and headed onto the street to start his performance. Then he took a casual glance up at the sky.

His eyes widened.

He looked back down at the gathering audience.

"Run!" He shouted. "Everyone clear out!"

The audience looked confused for a second.

"Run!"

The audience exchanged glances with each other, then cleared out of the area.

"You too, Henri. Keep your distance from here!"

Henri nodded, having also seen what was in the sky, and flew up to a safe distance.

Hisoka watched to make sure everyone had reached a safe distance, then dashed out himself. He then watched as the approaching fireball, which had slowed down significantly, but was still moving pretty quickly, crashed into the street, creating a brilliant explosion that prompted Hisoka to shield his eyes. He waited for the debris cloud to die down, then headed to the center of the explosion. His eyes widened.

Lying in the middle of the crater was a young girl of about seventeen – Hisoka's age. Her long, spiky hair was the color of cherry blossoms. He couldn't see her eyes, as they were closed. Her outfit consisted of a white scarf that appeared to consist of – dragon scales? She was also wearing a brown, single-sleeved crop top – Hisoka could barely see the bloodstains from the wound on her exposed abdomen – and a pair of baggy beige capris – similar to the long pants that Hisoka wore – and on her feet were a pair of plain black sandals. Additionally, there was a set of gold and silver keys attached to her hip, and a red guild crest on her right shoulder – the one that wasn't covered by a sleeve. Hisoka recognized that guildmark. He put a hand on the girl's right wrist. Her pulse was weak. She had also lost a lot of blood and was barely breathing. Hisoka sensed that the girl's life was in danger, and placed his hand on the wound. Water from the air condensed around his hand, and the wound began to close. Unfortunately, she still had several broken bones, which Hisoka could only partially repair.

"Oi! Henri!" Hisoka called. Henri glided down to meet him. "Can you help me out here?"

* * *

Her eyes opened, and everything came into focus.

There was a boy roughly her age staring down at her. His long, blonde hair was tied back in a ponytail, and reinforced by a plain, dark green headband. He was wearing a long, deep blue overcoat with silver trim and cuffs. On his legs and feet, he wore baggy beige pants – similar to her capris – and brown leather boots. He smelled familiar, for some reason, but she couldn't put a finger on it. He was sitting cross-legged on the left side of her bed.

"You're awake?" asked the boy.

"Yeah." She tried sitting up, but was met by a sharp pain in her chest. She grunted and laid back down.

"Don't try sitting up," the boy cautioned. "You broke several bones, including some ribs. I was able to close the stab wound, but I can only partially repair bones. Just be glad your life is no longer in danger."

"I see."

"I'm Hisoka, by the way," the boy put in.

"I'm…"

"I know who you are," Hisoka interrupted. "You're Nashi Dragneel of Fairy Tail, yes?"

"Heartfilia," Nashi corrected. "Nashi Heartfilia."

Hisoka looked confused. "But your father is Natsu Dragneel, right?"

"Yes. And my mother is Lucy Heartfilia."

Hisoka continued to look confused.

"The Heartfilia name is passed along the female line," Nashi explained.

Hisoka raised a finger and opened his mouth as if to say, "ah, I see," but no sound came out.

"Anyway, thanks for saving me."

"You're welcome."

There was a moment of silence.

"Where am I?" Nashi suddenly asked.

"You're in our hotel room," Hisoka replied.

"No. what I mean is, what city am I in?"

"Ah. Vistarion."

Nashi thought for a second, then replied with her next question. "Is that the name of a tree or flower?"

"No. Why?"

"I see. I was thrown that far, huh?"

"What do trees and flowers have to do with it?"

"You didn't know?" inquired Nashi.

Hisoka just sat there with a confused expression on his face.

"Every single city in Fiore is named after a tree or flower," Nashi explained. "Before I was thrown into this location, I was doing a job in Dogwood."

Hisoka's eyes widened. "What kind of job was it?!" he exclaimed.

"I was fighting a godslayer who had been terrorizing cities all over the continent. Specifically, a first generation purgatory godslayer."

"And they threw you this far?!"

"How far, exactly?"

"Vistarion is the capital of the Alvarez Empire."

Nashi's eyes widened. "He tossed me into another continent… like it was nothing?"

"It would seem so," Hisoka confirmed.

"I see. I guess I would have died in the landing if I hadn't used those flames to slow myself down."

"Not only that," added Hisoka. "You still would've died if Henri and I hadn't been there."

"Henri?"

"My cat," Hisoka explained. "She's sleeping in the bed to your right."

Nashi turned her head to the right side. She could only partially see the gray, long-furred exceed over the edge of the mattress, due to it being on a bedframe, while her mattress was on the floor.

"I see." She turned her head back to Hisoka. Then she touched a hand to her abdomen. "If you healed my wounds, why am I wearing bandages?"

"They're soaked with enchantments," Hisoka explained. "Your bones should be fully repaired in less than a day if you keep those on."

"I see. Thanks again." She closed her eyes and fell back asleep.

Hisoka smiled and then got into the unoccupied bed.

* * *

Nashi woke up and looked around the room.

It was empty.

Then she spotted a fireplace with a note attached to it.

 _You should replenish your strength before heading out. I left this for you to eat._

There was an arrow pointing down at a crackling fire.

"How did he know?" Nashi wondered aloud. She bent down, stuck her head in the fire, and inhaled, savoring the pleasant warmth running down her throat until she had consumed the flames. She looked down to see that her bandages had been removed. She then left the hotel room, walked down the hallway, and went downstairs. She looked around the dining hall, and then found the exit.

Nashi then wandered around town, seeing the sights. The city extended across a large stretch of land, and even onto some floating islands, one of which was made of solid ice, which Nashi didn't understand.

Then her ears perked up to the distant sound of people cheering.

She ran off in the direction of the sound; if there was cheering, it had to be something interesting, and she wanted to see it. She rounded a corner and then saw it.

Somebody was playing a violin, and Hisoka was dancing to it. Not only this, but trails of water were swirling around him in beautiful patterns. People were tossing money into a bucket, which Nashi assumed Hisoka was using for that very purpose.

Then the music changed. Hisoka stopped dancing, and the water that he seemed to be controlling shaped itself into characters. Nashi watched as he shaped out the story of two dragons who fell in love with each other. Then the humans began trying to exterminate the dragons, and killed one of them. The surviving dragon was sad, and went off to live on its own. Then a less violent human came along – an orphaned child – and the dragon learned to love again, raising the child as if it were its own. The audience cheered at the happy ending. Then, all of the water swirled into a sphere above Hisoka's head, and burst into an omnidirectional spray, soaking Nashi and the others. The audience cheered some more at the finale, and a bunch of money was tossed into the bucket.

Then Hisoka noticed Nashi and trotted over to her.

"Yo," he greeted.

"Amazing performance," Nashi affirmed. "But was that finale necessary?"

"Most of the audience knows I'm going to do that," Hisoka explained. "If they don't want to get wet, they move further away."

"Well, I didn't know that!"

"Geez, I'm sorry." Hisoka extended an arm towards her, and all of the water in Nashi's clothes was sucked out and drawn to Hisoka's hand, engulfing it in a sort of bubble. He then put the hand to his mouth and consumed the water. "There. Better?"

"Thanks," Nashi confirmed. "How did you know?"

"Huh?"

"You left a fire for me. How did you know I eat fire?"

"Oh. Well, first of all, I know who your parents are."

"I see."

"Second of all, I know what dragonslayers smell like. Everyone's magic power has a unique smell, so I could tell that you're a first generation fire dragonslayer as well as a celestial spirit mage."

"Second."

"Huh?"

"I'm a second generation dragonslayer," Nashi corrected. "I inherited the magic from my dad."

"Then why do you smell like first generation?"

"Probably because I am, in effect, first generation. However, because I inherited it, and was not taught by a dragon, I am officially second generation."

"Ah."

"Besides, all of the dragons are gone from Alakitasia and Ishgar," Nashi pointed out.

"From what I read, your father basically is a dragon."

"He's human," Nashi argued. "True, he's very dragon-like, and he did train me, but he's still human."

They stood there for a moment.

"Where's Henri?" Nashi suddenly asked.

Hisoka pointed to the stand where Henri was selling fish.

"I see."

"You should eat," Hisoka urged. "Fire may replenish your magic, but you'll need food for nourishment."

"I don't have any money," Nashi complained. "And if I did, it would probably be Fiorean currency."

"No problem," Hisoka reassured. "I can pay. Besides, I'm also hungry."

Nashi looked at Hisoka and smiled. "Thanks."

"Have fun with your date!"

Hisoka and Nashi whipped around to see Henri grinning at them. "It's not a date!" they simultaneously snapped. Henri just smirked at them.

* * *

Hisoka stared in shock.

Nashi had just had five large, filling meals, and was now wolfing down a sixth as if she was still hungry.

"Calm down!" Hisoka cautioned.

"Sorry," Nashi apologized through a mouthful of food. "I haven't eaten in four days, and that's not counting the time I spent unconscious."

Come to think of it, Hisoka realized, she still hadn't eaten the amount that he had eaten after three days of straight walking. He decided not to complain, though it was a bit expensive on his part.

"By the way," Nashi mentioned, changing the subject, "you seem to know a lot about our guild."

"I read books about it," explained Hisoka. "Whenever Henri and I stop in a new town or city, I head to the nearest library to read about it – well, really just to read in general – but largely about Fairy Tail."

"You have a strong interest in the guild, don't you?"

"Indeed," Hisoka confirmed. "I've wanted to join Fairy Tail for the past three years."

Nashi's eyes widened in surprise. "What kept you?"

"Henri, mostly," Hisoka explained. "She said we could join the guild later, when I was older."

"That cat tells you what to do?"

"Yeah," Hisoka replied. "She's raised me since I was ten."

"What about before that?"

"Flumentia," Hisoka continued. "She was my foster mother since I was three. I never knew my real parents."

"What happened to her?"

"I don't know," Hisoka protested. "One day, she just told me I had to leave because it was dangerous for me to stay."

"I see."

"So she dropped me off on Ishgar, where I wandered around and eventually met Henri."

"Hmm." Nashi stood up. "I'm done."

"You can stay at our place until you're ready to be on your way."

"Mm. Thanks." She walked out of the restaurant.

* * *

Hisoka woke up to the sound of the shower running.

 _Okay_ , he thought. _Makes sense. She probably hasn't showered in a while_.

A few minutes later, Nashi walked out of the bathroom, fully clothed, her hair drying from the heat that she was radiating. She spotted Hisoka.

"Again," she said, "thanks for saving me." She walked over to the window, pulled it open, and jumped out.

Hisoka dashed over to the window in time to see her dashing into the distance. He rapidly put his clothes on, then jumped out after her.

It took him a while to catch up. Luckily, he was abnormally fast. "Oi! Nashi!" he called.

Nashi turned her head towards him, but didn't break her pace.

"Where are you going?" Hisoka demanded.

"I'm finishing the job," Nashi responded.

"No way!" Hisoka argued. "He threw you into another continent like it was nothing. There's no way you'll defeat him on your own!"

"Well, then," Nashi responded, "it's a good thing you're with me, right?"

Hisoka stopped. Nashi stopped with him.

"You said you wanted to join Fairy Tail, right?"

Hisoka's eyes widened in surprise and joy

"Well, then consider this your first job."

Just then, Henri flew into sight. "I stopped to pay the hotel manager. What was that I just heard?"

"Henri," Hisoka beamed, "we're joining Fairy Tail!"

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **Yes, I did make the beginning sort of parallel to the original beginning of Fairy Tail. That was on purpose. There will be some chapters that parallel the original Fairy Tail, while others are completely my ideas. I hope you liked it!**


	2. A New Adventure: part 2

_March 7, X812_

 _The day that Nashi Heartfilia met Hisoka and Henri._

 _One of two encounters that would change the mage guild Fairy Tail forever._

 _To learn about the other encounter, we turn to another part of the world entirely. A small continent outside of the known world, quite some distance northwest of Alakitasia, and discovered so recently, it doesn't even have a name._

 _Let's turn back the clock to February 1._

* * *

A small ship sailed towards the beach.

"Sheesh! I am so glad that we got past the barrier."

Merlin looked out at the approaching shore. "Agreed," he replied. "Do you realize just how close I was to overriding the autopilot and turning the ship around?"

William nodded. "Same here, actually." She sat down on the deck. "Fear barriers are an absolute nightmare."

"Quite literally, in fact." Merlin glanced down at his sister. "Good thing the council provided us with this ship."

"Good thing they provided us with this ship anyway," William put in. "A normal ship from the harbor would have meant four months of travel, while this ship got us here in a month and a half. Also, this ship has an autopilot that's immune to fear, while a human captain would have turned back long before they got through the barrier. And one more thing…"

"I know." Merlin finished her sentence for her. "Anti-motion-sickness enchantments."

"I am _so_ not exaggerating," William whimpered, imagining the horrific concept. "Nobody can survive eight straight months of extreme motion sickness."

Merlin looked back out at the island. "What makes me curious," he queried, "is how the inhabitants managed to generate a fear barrier around the continent. That surely takes a tremendous amount of magic power."

"Maybe it's naturally occurring. Sort of like the miniature anima that have been randomly appearing throughout the world."

"I wonder…" Merlin looked up at the strange clouds above the continent.

"What?" asked William.

"What if there's a connection?"

"What do you mean?"

Merlin paced around the deck. "I'm sensing magic on that continent similar to the Anima that we've been investigating in recent months."

"Now that you mention it…" William sniffed the air. "Even though we've passed through the fear barrier, I still feel like there's something disconcerting about this island. It's not just the anima-like magic. Something else is going on here… there's something in the air…"

"I guess we'll find out when we explore the place," Merlin replied, jumping off onto the beach. William followed suit.

"Just in case…" William took out a pen and drew the word _CARBON_ in the air, which then solidified into the actual substance. She caught it in her hand as it fell, then broke it in half and gave one half to Merlin. "We might get attacked, and steel is a bit better than iron, so we might want to eat this."

Merlin nodded and took a large bite out of the _CAR_. He chewed and swallowed. "The air smells vaguely similar to the adult dragonslayers in the guild. I have a hunch what it might be. I hope I'm wrong." He shoved the rest of the _\R_ into his mouth.

"I have a feeling I know what that hunch is," William worried. "And I really wish I didn't."

* * *

"Blood?"

Merlin turned to his sister. "Huh?"

"There's blood in the snow." William knelt down. "There was a recent struggle somewhere around here."

They had now traveled several miles inland.

"Their scent is still fresh. So it was recent." William stood up and sniffed the air. "This way!" She dashed off into the woods.

"Oi! Wait!" Merlin took off after her. "How do you know they're not an enemy?"

"It's a human."

"True."

"And they're injured."

Merlin thought about this.

"If they are an enemy, the two of us would probably be more than enough to take them down."

Merlin nodded in realization, and they continued to follow the scent trail until they came into a clearing. They then stood there in shock at what they could see.

"This place…" William trailed off.

"Yeah," Merlin confirmed. "What happened to it?"

Before them was a completely deserted village. The houses were destroyed, and looked like they had been that way for a long time. Merlin and William headed down to take a closer look. The wood in the houses looked like they had been shredded, not burnt or crushed.

"W-What happened?" William worried.

They continued to wander around the uninhabited village, still following the scent.

An earsplitting roar sounded behind them.

"O-Oi, did you hear that…?" Merlin stammered.

"Your hunch was correct, wasn't it?" William worried.

They turned around.

Their eyes widened.

Bursting from the trees was a bluish-white dragon.

An arm grabbed each of them from behind, and a voice whispered next to their ears.

"Run."

The speaker dashed off, dragging the twins behind him. As they turned themselves and started running on their own two feet, they managed to see their rescuer. He was a little taller than Merlin, and had red, curly hair. He was wearing a thick red vest with white line patterns and white, fluffy trim. Further down he wore dark brown baggy pants and thick black boots. William saw that her sleeve had a bloody handprint on it, and looked over to see that the arm he had used to grab her was soaked in blood. The boy glanced behind at her and saw that she was staring.

"It's alright," he reassured her. "The wound will freeze over soon, and I'm resistant to injuries. This way!" He rounded a corner and dove into a house, and the twins went after him. The house looked like it may have once possessed multiple rooms, as well as a second floor, but those and the roof were gone now. The boy bent down and pulled open a trapdoor. "In here! Quickly!"

William jumped in, catching herself on the wooden ladder. It creaked under her weight. She climbed down onto some stone steps just in time to get out of the way of her brother coming down after her. Then she walked down the steps, the other two right behind her. There were no lights, so she had to listen to the echoes of her footsteps to navigate down the passageway until she came into a dimly lit room. There were a couple of cots and blankets on the floor, as well as a few books. William could see that one of them was titled _The Adventure of Iris_ , and was surprised that a copy of Lucy's book was this far out. There was a red luminous lacrima hanging from the ceiling in a leather harness.

"Seriously! Visitors?" William looked down to where the voice had come from, and saw a long-furred gray tabby cat staring up at her. "Akane! We already have enough trouble supporting ourselves."

The boy who had rescued them stepped into the room. "They had nowhere else to go. It was either rescue them or let them get eaten."

"And what was wrong with the second choice? I'm afraid that when our food supply is going down and we have no way off the island, the only way to survive is to not empathize with anyone else."

"I'm sorry," the boy asserted, "but I can't do that."

The cat rolled his eyes and went back to the book he had been reading.

"Sorry about Thomas," the boy apologized. "He does have a point, though. We won't last much longer like this. We're either going to starve or get eaten. Personally I'd rather go with the former."

Merlin and William just looked at him. Now that they were getting a clearer (though also redder) look at him, they could tell that he looked about seventeen – two years older than them – and had dark brown eyes.

"I'm Akane, by the way," he introduced himself. "Akane Skofnung. And this is my cat, Thomas."

"I'm not 'your' cat."

"You're the cat that I live with." Akane rolled his eyes.

Merlin continued the introductions. "I'm Merlin Redfox. And this is my sister, William."

Akane widened his eyes. "You're the legendary Blue Steel twins?"

"The what?"

"And wait… you're a girl?"

William raised an eyebrow. "You got a problem with that?"

"No, no," Akane clarified. "I just didn't expect it, what with the name."

William rolled her eyes. "Well, now you know."

"What are the 'Blue Steel' twins?" asked Merlin.

"They're you guys." Akane replied. "The S-class twins of the wizard guild Fairy Tail, right?"

The twins were confused. "How do you know about Fairy Tail?" William asked. "You live all the way out on this continent, right?" She pointed to _The Adventure of Iris_ lying on the floor. "And how did you get that book?"

Akane nodded. "Inhabitants of this continent sometimes sail to the eastern continents for supplies. That's where I got these books, as well as stories about the wizard guilds of Alakitasia and Ishgar." He looked down at the leather lining the floor. "That dragon won't be leaving for at least the next few days. You can sleep here until then, but I'm afraid that's the only bedding we have, and there aren't any more cots, but there are a couple more blankets."

"Thanks," William replied as she took the blankets that were handed to her. She gave some to Merlin. "What kind of a name is 'Blue Steel'?"

Akane shrugged. "Don't ask me. I didn't come up with it."

William smiled at the funny name. Then she laid down, spread the blankets over herself, and slipped into unconsciousness.

* * *

"Three years?"

Akane nodded as he sat down on the floor with them. It had been two days since he had rescued them.

"I haven't seen another human in that long. That frost dragon has been decimating our continent for the past ten years, and there's a good chance that Thomas and I are the last ones."

"And you guys never called for help?"

"Oh, we did send for help," Akane explained. "However, there seems to be a fear barrier surrounding the continent that only affects those who've never been here."

"Oh, yeah," Merlin remembered. "That did give us a bit of trouble on the way here. We had to use a special ship."

"In fact," added William, "we were originally here to investigate that."

"I don't know what the cause could be," Akane testified. "I've personally tried locating the source, but that dragon keeps attacking me, and even if I could locate it, I could never get off this island. I get severe motion sickness, which would kill me by the time I got to the nearest landmass. If Thomas and I fly, we'll just get taken out by the dragon."

"Therefore, we have no way off of the island," Thomas explained. "We have nothing left to do except stay here and starve to death."

"No!" Merlin jumped up, surprising everyone. "You can't let it end this way! You can't just die in a hole! You can't go down without a fight!"

"Merlin…" William began.

Merlin cut her off. "What are the chances of you dying if you just hole up like this? You'll absolutely die. But what if you were to fight back? Then there's the smallest chance that you will live to see tomorrow."

William smiled, seeing her brother's point, and stood up with him. "And besides," she added, "you have us this time. Three dragonslayers should be enough to take down one dragon. Besides, don't you want to avenge your dad?"

"How did you…?"

"I told them while you were asleep," Thomas interrupted them.

Akane glared at him. "That's personal!"

Thomas grinned. "But these are our new friends, right?"

Akane sighed. "Are you really determined to do this?"

The twins nodded.

Akane got up. "I see." He gave his bandaged arm a rub. "Well, really, it was just fear that held me back. Now that I have some powerful help, I have confidence."

They all left the room, then climbed up the stairs and out into the night.

"It's still dark," complained Merlin.

"Of course it is," Akane retorted. "We're really far north, and it's the middle of winter."

They waited. Absolute silence. Then Merlin got bored and decided to make things faster.

"Oi! Dragon!" He shouted. "We're here to challenge you!"

"You? Challenge me?" a voice boomed from the woods. Then the dragon rose from the treetops, spreading his wings. Now that Merlin and William could get a good look at the dragon, they could see that he was at least twice the size of a typical house. His wings stirred up a powerful wind, making it hard to remain upright. "Don't make me laugh! Food is not supposed to challenge its eater. Besides, what can three puny humans do? Even if one of you is a dragonslayer, I am immune to most of…"

"Kouryukon!" A steel pillar extended from Merlin's arm and smacked into the dragon, taking him by surprise, as well as punching through a bit of scale, but not moving him.

"Make that three dragonslayers!" William jumped onto Merlin's pillar and dashed along it with surprising speed and balance. "Kouryuken!" She extended both her arms, and a pair of steel blades extended from them. She slashed at the dragon, tearing away at his scales and digging into flesh. The dragon roared in pain, flying away and shaking her off. Luckily, Thomas was ready, flying in to catch her, and then falling back to the others. Merlin's arm returned to its normal form, as well as William's arms.

"You're a lot heavier than you look," Thomas commented as he set her down.

"I have a steel skeleton, okay?!" William snapped.

"I do believe that it's rude to comment on a girl's weight," Merlin added. "You should be ashamed of yourself."

"Whatever," Thomas blew him off. "Let's just defeat this guy."

They all looked over as the dragon dropped to the ground and inspected the wound on his chest. Then he looked back at them.

"Alright," he concurred. "I accept the challenge." His mouth filled up, then opened, releasing his breath weapon. Akane and Thomas dodged, but Merlin and William were taken by surprise.

"Oi! Are you guys alright?!" Akane shouted.

"We're fine." The ice cleared, revealing the twins to be fine, other than their faces and coats being flecked with small cuts.

"Oh?" the dragon questioned. "You're alright?" He spread his wings and lifted off. "Shimoryu no Yokugeki!" Beat his wings at them, creating an icy blast directly at the twins. Akane dove towards them, grabbing each one by the waist and then lifting off in time to dodge the blast.

William looked down at the now-distant ground, then looked up at Akane. "Wings?"

Akane nodded. He was now flying up to the dragon's level using a pair of red dragon wings. "Thomas taught me Aera when I was really young."

"I see," replied Merlin. "Say, can you drop us directly above the dragon?"

"Sure. What do you plan to do?"

William grinned. "Just wait and see."

Akane flew up above the dragon, then flew over so that he was directly below them, and let go of the twins.

"Kouryudantou!" Merlin and William's lower halves each turned into rounded points, and their arms turned into fins, increasing their terminal velocities and screaming towards their target. They hit the dragon on each shoulder blade, punching straight through the scales and shattering bone. The dragon roared in pain and dropped to the ground, stunning the twins as their limbs returned to normal.

"You wenches!" the dragon screamed. He got up with unexpected ease. "Now you've done it!"

"How…?" Akane began. Then he saw it. Ice had formed in the cracks in the dragon's bones, patching them up in a way.

"I can no longer fly! But I don't need to in order to kill you." He shook off Merlin and William, who fell to the ground, still stunned. He then picked up William before she could react, gripping her body so that only her head was visible. "I can crush you both, starting with this one."

"No! Don't!" Merlin tried to stand, but his vision tunneled and he collapsed to his knees; it seemed he had a concussion from the fall. He couldn't think straight or figure out what he was supposed to do.

There was a crunch.

Then a flash of red.

"Shinkuryu no Kenkaku!" Akane slammed into the dragon's throat, engulfed in some sort of crimson energy, shocking him and causing him to drop William.

Merlin tried to think through the concussion, and then realized what was happening. He mustered up all the energy he could, and just stood up, running straight towards William. His vision tunneled until he went blind, and he tried to rely on his other senses, listening as a body hit the snow. His hearing and smell faded, and he was forced to rely only on touch as he ran over and knelt down where he believed his sister had landed. He fell onto all fours, feeling around until his hand rested on the fabric of her coat. His senses cleared, and he saw that her right flank was soaked with blood. He sniffed at the iron in her blood, and guessed that she had lost over a liter. "No. No!" Merlin and William were both small. Therefore, small levels of blood loss could easily kill them. His finger turned to a sharp point, and he tore open the fabric where it had been soaked, exposing bare skin. He could see that it was quite a large puncture wound, and also deep. He placed his hand on the wound and applied pressure, stopping the blood flow. His heart sank as he heard that her heartbeat was irregular and her breathing was getting weaker.

"Shinkuryuken!" Crimson energy extended from Akane's right arm, engulfing it and forming the shape of a gigantic blade. He swiped down, penetrating scales and flesh, and crushing his way through the dragon's ribcage. "Shinkuryu no Hokou!" He finished the dragon off with his breath weapon, tearing through several organs with pure destructive energy. The dragon collapsed and stopped moving. Akane lowered himself to the ground and inspected his injuries. The dragon had fought back; there was a gash above his left eyebrow, and his arms and face were flecked with small cuts from another wing attack that the dragon had made, just like he had done to the twins… the twins! He looked around and spotted them. He then ran over and saw that Merlin was crouched over William, holding his hand against a wound. Thomas was standing near them, just looking shocked.

"She's going to die," Merlin choked, tears welling in his eyes. "Her ribs are broken, and broken steel inside the body is super-dangerous. She lost a lot of blood, too, and I don't know what damage it did to her organs! There's nothing I can do!"

"Oi…" Akane could feel tears welling in his eyes. That was stupid. He barely knew them. Why was he already this attached? "What are you saying…?"

Merlin looked up at the clouds. Then his face changed from fearful sadness to sudden realization.

"What is it?" asked Akane.

"The clouds…" Merlin looked further inland.

"Huh?"

* * *

"What did you figure out?" asked Akane, who was now flying through the air, carrying William bridal style. Part of her coat had been ripped off and used as a makeshift bandage.

"Our only hope," replied Merlin, who was being carried by Thomas. "At the center of those spiraling clouds is some sort of really powerful magic. I'm pretty sure it has no healing properties, but…" He closed his eyes, holding back a sob, then opened them again. "We have to try!"

Akane looked at him, then looked back at their destination. "Right!" he agreed. "Max Speed!"

Thomas followed suit, and they sped towards the center of the spiral.

Everyone's eyes widened.

Underneath the center of the spiral was a gigantic, green forest. Not with the evergreen trees that populated most of the continent, but warm-climate trees. Trees that shouldn't have been able to survive this far north.

Merlin looked at William. "Let's go," he commanded. They dove towards the heart of the forest, breaking through the canopy and landing on the soft, snowless ground below. Merlin looked around. "There!" He pointed to a white, glowing, moss-covered lacrima. His vision started to tunnel again, and he knelt down, putting one hand on the ground to steady himself. He struggled to think straight.

"You okay?" asked Akane, setting William down on a patch of moss.

"I got a concussion from that fall," replied Merlin. "I'll be okay later. As for now, not really." He looked up at the canopy, forcing himself to think. _That lacrima is Anima. It's not healing magic, but there's something about this place…_ He looked around him. _These trees and moss must have absorbed the magic and converted it into life magic. If we could control that somehow…_

"Oi, Merlin!" Akane called to him. "Her breathing isn't weakening anymore. And her heart rate's stable."

Merlin's eyes widened in surprise, and he looked at where his sister was lying unconscious. Sure enough, she was breathing steadily, and he could hear a stable heartbeat. "The moss."

"Moss?"

"The moss is soaked with healing magic!" Merlin leapt to his feet, leaning against a tree to steady himself as he got dizzy. Then his vision cleared, and he looked around for stray moss on the trees. He found it on the sides facing away from the lacrima, where there was less light, and tore some off. He stumbled over to William and knelt over her, placing the moss on the wound.

"She's still lost too much blood," Akane murmured as the wound partially closed.

"I can fix that." Merlin turned a finger on his left hand into a spike, then selected a vein on his right arm, and sliced it open, grunting in pain as he did so.

"Wait," warned Akane. "You have a concussion. If you give that much blood…"

"I'm fine with being unconscious for a few days," Merlin interrupted. "Kouryumugi." An extremely narrow steel tube protruded from the vein he had just sliced open, and he held his arm above the wound on William's side as it imbedded itself in an abdominal vein. He forced himself to hold still as blood was pumped from his body into his sister's, even as he felt himself starting to black out. he continued to hold himself steady until he was satisfied, then got rid of the tube and let the world around him go black.

* * *

Merlin opened his eyes.

He was in a dimly lit room, under a red glow. He was confused for a second, then realized where he was. He held up his right arm, and saw that a strip of leather was tied around it. He sat up. His vision tunneled for a few seconds, then went back to normal. He was back in Akane and Thomas's room. He looked to his right and saw Akane and Thomas sitting next to William, who was still unconscious.

"Will…" he crawled over to them.

"The concussion she got was worse than yours," Thomas explained. "And the moss only partially healed her."

"You mean she…?" Tears formed in Merlin's eyes.

"Her life is no longer in danger, thanks to your quick thinking," Thomas reassured him. "However, she won't regain consciousness for a few weeks. Also, it wasn't just her ribs that were broken. There was also her skull, left hip, and both her legs, as well as her left arm, and she has two cracked vertebrae. And several internal organs, including her right lung and her stomach, were damaged. I estimate that she'll be able to walk again in about two months."

"Thomas was the apprentice of our local doctor before they were killed," Akane explained. "So you can trust his judgement."

"Thank goodness…" Merlin looked around, then located his coat and boots. He started to put them on.

"Where are you going?"

Merlin looked up at Akane. "Will and I have to get back to Fiore. We have to report to the Magic Council, and then we have to get back to the guild headquarters, and then go see Porlyuchka to see if she can do anything for Will."

"Porlyuchka?"

"Our guild's unofficial healer," Merlin answered.

"I see." Akane looked down at William, then stood up. "Well, you're still too weak to carry a person, so I might as well see you off." He crouched and slipped his arms under William, then stood up with her. "Let's go."

They walked up the passageway until they came to the ladder. Merlin climbed up first, then got out of the way as Akane flew up with William, with some assistance from Thomas.

* * *

"Say, Merlin."

"Hmm?"

They were currently inside the ship's cabin.

"Thomas and I have no reason to stay on this continent." He set William down on her bed and then turned to face Merlin. "So we were wondering if you could maybe give us a ride back to Ishgar?"

"Sure thing," replied Merlin. "I take it none of your ships had anti-motion-sickness magic?"

Akane shook his head. "Such technologies didn't exist for our people," he explained. "Therefore, I've never been able to leave this continent."

"Well, then, this is your chance."

"Except for one thing." Akane sat down. "We have nowhere to go."

"Well…" Merlin thought for a second. "You could always join Fairy Tail."

Akane's eyes widened. "Would they let me in?"

Merlin smiled. "Pretty much the only requirement is that you want to join," he replied. "Plus, you saved me and especially my sister, which means you'll start out with a good reputation."

"Well, I'd love to. Thomas," he called, "what do you say we join Fairy Tail?"

Thomas flew into the cabin. "What?" He thought about it for a second, then smiled and nodded.

"Well, then…" Merlin stood up and walked over to the controls. "I guess it's decided." He pressed a few buttons.

The ship turned itself around, and sped towards Fiore.

* * *

 **Yes, I did name a female character William. I hereby declare William a gender-neutral name. Hope you enjoyed!**


	3. The Fourth Generation

_Hargeon Port_

* * *

"Uuuugggghhhh…" Hisoka groaned.

"One thing's for certain," Nashi weakly complained. "We are never riding on a boat again."

"We should've swam," Hisoka chimed in.

"And drowned from exhaustion?" inquired Nashi. "Believe me, this was the better."

"Honestly," complained Henri. "You two are pathetic. Two weeks on a boat and you still can't get used to it? I was fine after two _days_."

"Never… again," Hisoka wavered, ignoring Henri's statement. "Never…" he trailed off, unable to form words through his nausea.

"We're… walking… the rest… of the way…" Nashi added, also trailing off due to nausea.

They both groaned.

"If it helps," Henri suggested, "I'll find us a place to stay."

"Aye…" Nashi whispered. Hisoka simply collapsed face-first on the pathway.

"Sheesh." Henri glided over and propped Hisoka back up. He stumbled a bit, but this time retained his balance and shambled along next to Nashi. Henri then flew off to find a place.

"I didn't anticipate boats being so wobbly," Hisoka commented to Nashi. "I thought they were designed for water."

"They were designed to float on water," Nashi explained. "But there are just some of us who can't handle transportation." She collapsed onto a nearby bench. "Have you never been on a boat before?"

"Or any transportation," admitted Hisoka as he dropped down next to her. "When crossing between the two continents, Henri and I just fly."

"Oh, yeah," Nashi realized. "I forgot about the wings."

They sat there for a moment, regaining their bearings.

"By the way," Hisoka changed the subject, "how are we going to find this godslayer?"

Nashi looked at him. "What do you mean?"

"Well, you said he was terrorizing various cities throughout the continent," Hisoka pointed out. "So there's no guarantee that he'll still be in Dogwood."

Nashi opened her mouth, then closed it again.

"In fact," Hisoka continued, "how long does he typically stay in one place?"

"About three to four days," Nashi admitted, realizing the situation here. "So we have no idea where he is now."

"We'll worry about it later," Hisoka declared, slowly getting up from the bench. "We've been mostly unable to keep anything down for two weeks, and I imagine we're both starving. Let's go eat something."

"Agreed." Nashi followed suit, and they continued to wander around town, looking for somewhere to eat.

"What about there?" Hisoka pointed to a small restaurant labeled _8-Island_. "I bet I'll run into more Fairy Tail wizards there!"

"Nope!" Nashi grabbed him by the arm. "We're not meeting any of my guildmates until we finish the job!" She dragged him in the direction of another restaurant.

"Why not?!" demanded Hisoka, breaking free of her grasp but continuing to follow. "It's not like we're going back to the guild before we finish the job, right?"

Nashi stopped.

"Besides," Hisoka added, "even if we were, that sometimes happens, right? Where we go back to the guild to get our bearings about the situation or something like that?"

"We're doing it this way," Nashi explained, "because I prefer to do it this way."

"It's because you're embarrassed, isn't it?" probed Hisoka. "You couldn't do the job alone, like you thought you could, and you don't want to face your friends after that."

"Shut up." Nashi stopped and glared at him. She was surprised to find that Hisoka didn't seem the least bit intimidated by that.

"It's not embarrassing to need help," Hisoka pointed out.

"It's not that," Nashi protested. "It's that I'm pretty sure Emma's currently working there."

Hisoka raised an eyebrow. "Who's Emma?"

"Another Fairy Tail wizard," Nashi explained. "You don't know about Emma Redfox?"

Hisoka shook his head. "Is she by any chance related to the Blue Steel twins?"

"The what? Who?"

"The Blue Steel twins," Hisoka repeated. "They're this set of twins in Fairy Tail. They're famous for how powerful they become when they're together. I've heard that neither one of them is S-class on their own, but when together, they're allowed to go on SS-class quests, and sometimes even 10-year quests!"

Nashi sighed. "You really are obsessed with our guild," she complained. "Are you talking about Merlin and William?"

Hisoka thought for a second, then nodded.

"Emma is their older sister," Nashi explained, "and she seriously gets on my nerves. I'm surprised you haven't heard of her."

"How exactly does she get on your nerves?"

Nashi shrugged. "She's just really annoying."

"I see."

"Although," Nashi added, "imagine the look on her face when she finds out I'm more famous than her!"

"I don't like that grin," Hisoka complained as Nashi marched toward 8-Island. He then ran after her as she kicked the doors open.

"Oi! Metal-Head!" she shouted. She looked around the room, which currently didn't have any customers, and then marched up to the counter, where there was a short, old man – Hisoka was surprised that someone like him wasn't retired; he looked at least 100.

"Hey, Yajima-san," Nashi greeted the man. "Where's Emma?"

"Please think before bursting into the room shouting," Yajima complained. "Also, I don't know."

"Emma decided to go on a different job," a voice in the back said. In walked a tall, muscular man with short, blonde hair. He appeared to be in his mid-40s. "Therefore, it's just me and Fried today."

"I see." Nashi pouted. "Huh?" She walked over to the counter and sniffed the man. "I see!" she suddenly shouted, causing everyone in the room to jump in surprise.

"What do you see?" asked Hisoka, propping his chair back up and sitting back down.

Nashi walked over to Hisoka and sniffed him. Then, once again, she walked over to the other man and sniffed him. "When I first met you, I thought you smelled familiar, but I couldn't put my finger on it until now. You smell like Laxus!"

"Really?" asked Laxus. "I've never seen him before."

"Also," Hisoka added, "I'd never been to this continent until seven years ago, and I've certainly never seen you before."

"You two are clearly related somehow," Nashi interjected.

"Perhaps."

"Who is this guy anyway?" asked Laxus.

"This is Hisoka," replied Nashi. "He's helping me finish my job, and then we're heading back to the guild so that he can officially join."

"You still haven't finished the job?"

Nashi shook her head. "I ran out of food money, so I was starving by the time I was ready to fight him, and he nearly killed me."

"Henri and I saved her," Hisoka put in.

"Henri?"

"My cat," Hisoka explained. "She's finding a place for us to stay at the moment."

"Ah."

Hisoka looked up at the menu. "By the way, we were just on a boat for two weeks and we couldn't keep anything down, so we're currently starving."

"A boat?" Laxus inquired. "But Dogwood is in the east."

"We'll explain everything," replied Hisoka, "but first, can you take our orders?"

"Please?" Nashi chimed in.

* * *

"Let's see…" Hisoka drew a line on the map. "He terrorized Buttercup Village nine days before you headed to Dogwood to fight him. Then, six days after you landed in Vistarion…" He drew another line. "…he reportedly attacked some people in Crocus. Now I heard some rumors among town…" He drew some more lines. "…that he attacked some cities and villages in this area, in roughly this order." He stood up. "So if I'm right, he should be arriving in Hargeon sometime today."

Nashi's eyes widened. "We were that lucky?"

"It would seem so," Henri confirmed. "Don't underestimate Hisoka's tracking ability – his intelligence-gathering or his nose."

"Impressive," Freed commented. "You're almost as good as Levy."

"Thanks," Hisoka simpered. "Actually, I think I can hear footsteps outside of the city, in roughly the direction I expected him to come from."

"I guess we don't have time to make a plan," Henri complained.

"Who needs a plan?" Nashi ran out the door. "We can attack first, then improvise!"

"Oi! Wait up!" Hisoka ran out after her. "I told you that you couldn't fight him on your own."

Henri followed suit.

"Honestly," chuckled Laxus. "She's just like her father."

Freed rolled his eyes at his husband. "I'm going to say that's roughly the 50th time you've said that in the past five years."

"More or less," Laxus agreed. "By the way, I wonder when they'll be back?"

"It's hard saying," Freed replied. "It was a hard enough quest that Master Erza wanted both Gildarts and Team Natsu to go, so it could still be years longer."

"I kind of feel bad for Nashi," Laxus chided. "Both her parents are out on a 500-year quest, and we have no idea when they'll be back. Not to mention her brother went and joined Sabertooth."

"She's an independent woman," Freed assured him. "She may be just as immature as Natsu when he was her age, but nevertheless, she's proven to be fine – even satisfied – to be living on her own. Who knows? Maybe she'll have one of those rebellious phases where she tries to take over the guild."

Laxus pouted and turned away from Freed. "Shut up."

Freed laughed and kissed him lightly on the cheek. "I'll never stop teasing you about that."

"Good grief."

* * *

"Remember," Hisoka reminded Nashi, "we're not certain that this is him, and you're the only one who knows what he looks like."

"I know," Nashi replied. "Therefore, I'll attack first. Then you'll know… look out!" She slammed her body into Hisoka, knocking him out of the way of the blue-hot embers that were rapid-fired into the ground less than a second later.

"Thanks," Hisoka said. He then looked in the direction that the embers had come from.

"Oh?" inquired the man who was now walking towards them. "You didn't die the first time? You should have at least learned your lesson."

"That's too bad." Nashi charged at the godslayer, igniting her fist. "Karyu no Tekken!" She lunged at him, and he blocked her fist with his hand. "I'm not done yet. Karyu no Kagizume!" Her foot ignited, and she jumped up and twisted her body in midair, successfully landing a blow on the godslayer's jaw. The godslayer let go of her. "Karyu no Yokugeki!" Tendrils of flame extended from Nashi's arms, and she slashed at the godslayer, knocking him back a few feet.

"Alright," the godslayer chided. "You used up your element of surprise." His mouth filled up. "Rengokujin no Dogou!" A blast of violet energy came from his mouth, engulfing Nashi. Hisoka could hear her yelling in pain. He dashed to rescue her as she was thrown into the air, but was beaten to it by Henri, who caught her in midair, then set her down.

"A cat?" the godslayer questioned. "Bo-ring!" He extended his arms towards Nashi and Henri. "Rengokujin no Jigoku!" A white ball of energy surged towards the two…

…and then disappeared as it hit a spiked shield.

"Enchanted adamantine armor," Henri explained as she lowered the shield. "Modified to be exceed-sized, and enchanted to disperse any magic that hits it. I mostly use my requip space for storing goods, but I also have a few sets of armor just in case of something like this." Her armor dematerialized. "You okay, Nashi?"

"Yeah," Nashi confirmed, grinning as if she was having fun. "If anything, I'm fired up."

Hisoka just stood there, staring at the godslayer. His heart rate and breathing quickened. Anger welled up inside him.

"Karyu no hokou!" Nashi blasted the godslayer with flames from her mouth, but was met by his breath weapon.

"Soren."

Both Nashi and the godslayer turned toward Hisoka.

"Ah, Hisoka," the godslayer greeted. "Sorry for not recognizing you at first. Long time no see."

"What are you doing, Soren?" the fury began to show in Hisoka's voice.

"Oh, you know, just giving this continent a taste of our power. We don't want them getting the idea that they can fight back. Man, when you went missing, I thought they'd executed you or something. To think you were here these past seven years. Flumentia's doing, I suppose? That dragon knew no bounds."

"Dragon?" Nashi's eyes widened. "Hisoka, who is this man. Also, Flumentia's a dragon?!"

"Indeed," Soren continued, tilting his head. "She taught your friend Hisoka here magic. Although, she kind of rebelled against our new cause, so I'm afraid we had to execute her."

Hisoka sank to his knees. "You're lying…" he whispered, tears forming in his eyes.

Henri and Nashi simply stood there in shock.

"Nope. It's the truth," Soren corrected. "It happened about a year after you disappeared."

"You're lying!" Hisoka lunged at Soren, impaling him with a water blade that had formed around his hand.

"My, my," commented Soren, coughing up blood but otherwise unaffected by Hisoka's attack. "You always were terrible at accepting the truth. Oh, well. Rengokujin no Dogou!"

"Hisoka!" Nashi yelled. The blast cleared, and there was nothing there. "Hisoka was…"

"It's alright." Henri pointed toward the sky. "Look."

Nashi looked up, and her eyes widened. "W-Wings…?"

Hisoka was now floating in midair; a pair of webbed, fin-like dragon wings had sprouted from his back.

"Aera," Henri explained. "I taught him Aera. However, his dragonslayer magic makes them look like the wings of his respective dragon."

"Dragonslayer…?"

"Indeed," Henri confirmed. "Hisoka is a river dragonslayer."

"What new cause?" Hisoka snarled

"All you need to know is that Flutlogia's legacy is gone," Soren put simply. "And we were ordered to kill the one with his soul in them."

"What?" Hisoka's eyes widened in shock.

Soren grinned. "So I'm afraid that since that dragon's soul is in you, you're going to have to go."

"Dragon's… soul?" Nashi puzzled.

Henri shrugged. "Not even I knew about that."

Hisoka extended his arms. Trails of water spiraled from his arms, both extending outward and engulfing his wings. "Kawatatsu no Yokugeki!"

"Rengokujin no Jigoku!" The ball of energy surged towards Hisoka, boiling off his wing attack and engulfing his body. He yelled in pain as the purgatory flames burned him, and he fell to the ground next to Nashi and Henri. His clothes were burnt and torn in several places.

"You okay?" asked Nashi.

Hisoka ignored her and lunged back at Soren. He grabbed him by his vest and threw him up in the air. Then he flew up to meet him. "Kawatatsu no Tekken!" he punched Soren in the stomach, throwing him even further upward. "Kawatatsu no…" his mouth filled up. "…Hokou!" A huge torrent of water surged from his open mouth, blasting Soren towards some distant mountains. Nashi watched as there was an explosion of debris on one of the mountains. Then she ran over to Hisoka. Henri glided after her.

"Did you defeat him?"

Hisoka looked at Nashi. "No. I took him by surprise, that's all. He'll be back in a few minutes."

"I see." Nashi looked at the mountains, then back at Hisoka. "What did he mean, 'dragon's soul'?"

Hisoka sighed. "I'm a river dragonslayer."

"Yeah; Henri told me that."

"Not only that," Hisoka continued. "I'm a fourth generation dragonslayer."

"Fourth?"

Hisoka nodded.

"I know first generation," Nashi said. "They were taught by dragons. Then there's second generation dragonslayers, who either obtained the magic through artificial means or inherited it from dragonslayer parents."

"Right. And that's what you are."

Nashi nodded. "And then there's third generation dragonslayers, who both artificially have dragonslayer magic and were taught by dragons."

"Right."

"I've never heard of a fourth generation, and I can't imagine what they would be."

"Fourth generation is also known as the Lost Generation," explained Hisoka. "We're like the first generation, except our souls are fused with those of dragons."

Henri floated in front of Hisoka, her eyes widening. "So when he said 'dragon's soul'…"

Hisoka nodded. "I have a dragon inside me known as Flutlogia, who died two hundred years ago."

They looked in the direction of the mountains. Soren was dashing back towards them.

"I suppose this is your fight?" Nashi inquired.

"Absolutely not!" exclaimed Hisoka. "I can't defeat him on my own. We'll have to work together."

Nashi nodded, and dashed towards Soren. Hisoka followed suit.

"He's immune to fire," Hisoka explained, "so you won't be able to use it directly."

"No problem!" replied Nashi. "I can use them as thrust. Karyu no Tekken! And… Karyu no Enchu!" Her entire forearm blazed, spitting out fire behind her. As her fist struck Soren in the face, Nashi's other hand reached for her keys.

"Ah," Hisoka realized. "I forgot you were also a celestial spirit mage."

Nashi held up a gold key as Soren flew backwards. "Gate of the Scorpion, I open thee. Scorpio!"

"We are!" a man materialized wearing some strange clothing, including a sort of gunning device that vaguely resembled a scorpion's tail. "Sand Buster!" Sand blasted out of the device and engulfed Soren.

"Karyu no Hokou!" Nashi unleashed her breath weapon once more, this time into the sandstorm, creating a terrifying inferno of red-hot flaming sand.

Hisoka waited. If their elements collided with one another, it would simply create a cloud of steam. Therefore, their only option was to attack separately.

 _Wait a minute. I can still boost her attack power_. Hisoka opened his mouth and began to suck the moisture out of the air. He kept going until the air was completely dry. He could see the effect it had on Nashi's and Henri's hair.

"There," he shouted to Nashi. "Your flames should work better now. Also, what is it your dad often says? Ah, yes." He charged at Soren and kicked him in the stomach with his full body weight. "Now that I've eaten, I'm all revved up!" He pushed off, landed on his feet, and extended his arms. "Kawatatsu no Enkou!" He spun around, creating a spinning disk of water, which lifted away from him and shot at Soren, turning the stab wound into a large gash.

"Don't underestimate him." Hisoka fell back next to Nashi. "He's highly resistant to physical injuries."

"Got it."

"By the way, why can't you eat that stuff? It's basically fire."

"Sand Buster!" Scorpio continued to keep the godslayer busy.

"Godslayer magic," replied Nashi. "Dragonslayers can't eat godslayer elements."

"I see." Hisoka thought for a moment. "I wonder if there's any sort of combo attack that _can_ be done with fire and water?"

"Not that I know of," Nashi admitted. "We'll just have to attack separately."

"And I don't have enough magic for any more requips," Henri added.

Soren lunged at them. "Rengokujin no Jigoku!" The ball of purgatory energy shot towards them.

Before Hisoka could block it, the giant projectile bounced off of an invisible wall and smacked into Soren. He tumbled to the ground. Then Hisoka saw it.

There were runes floating in the air.

"Any magic used within this barrier will be deflected towards the caster." Hisoka, Nashi and Henri turned to see Freed standing behind them, his rune-drawing rapier drawn.

"Rairyu no Houken!" They turned back around in time to see Laxus deliver a massive blow to Soren, sending him sprawling. "Rairyu no Agito!" He brought his joined fists down on the godslayer, along with quite a large amount of lightning.

Hisoka walked over to inspect Laxus's handiwork. Soren was barely conscious; Hisoka could barely hear his brain activity. "I suppose the Magic council will come to arrest him?"

Laxus nodded. "We called them before coming to your rescue."

"I see." Hisoka looked down at his former friend lying on the ground, struggling to get to his feet. Then he picked Soren up by the shirt collar. Water condensed around his fist, and he delivered an intense blow to the man's face. Then he screamed in rage, following through with a magically assisted kick in the stomach. Soren fell to the ground, unconscious, but Hisoka continued to deal blow after blow, tears forming in his eyes.

"Hisoka, stop!" Freed shouted, beginning to panic. "Are you trying to kill him?!" Hisoka ignored him, continuing to channel his rage into his defeated opponent. Then Nashi marched over, grabbed Hisoka by the back of his overcoat, and dragged him over to a spot on the grass. Hisoka struggled a bit, then gave up and allowed Nashi to sit him down. Then Nashi sat down and faced him.

"S-Sorry," Hisoka sobbed. "It…" He sniffed. "I… I didn't want to believe him, I searched for deceitful intent. I…"

"Yeah," Nashi agreed, letting him rest his head on her chest. "You lost a parent. Your friend betrayed you. I understand that you're super-frustrated. And the two weeks of motion sickness can't have helped."

Hisoka tried to say something, but all that came out was more sobbing.

"But beating up an unconscious person won't make you feel any better. What will help is time, as well as doing things that make you happy."

Just then, some detention officers from the magic council arrived.

"Where's the godslayer?"

Laxus pointed to the unconscious man at his feet.

The squad captain walked over and put a pair of magic-sealing handcuffs on Soren, then called for a stretcher. "Why is he all beaten up?" he asked. "Those don't look like battle injuries."

Laxus tilted is head towards Hisoka, who was still leaning against Nashi, tears running down his face.

"What's with him?"

"Don't ask me," replied Laxus. "And you probably shouldn't ask him, either. From what I can tell, it's personal."

The captain looked back at Hisoka, shrugged, and went on his way. The detention officers followed suit, two of them carrying Soren on a stretcher. Once they had left, Nashi stood up, then offered a hand to Hisoka.

"Come on," Nashi commanded. "Let's get you officially into the guild. It won't cheer you up completely, but it's a start, right?"

Hisoka sat there for a moment, then grabbed Nashi's hand and pulled himself up. "Yeah," he agreed. "I want to join your guild. That hasn't changed."

"By the way," Nashi suddenly realized, "where's Henri flown off to?"

"Over here!" Henri came flying from the direction that the detention squad had gone, carrying a thick envelope. "You forgot to collect the reward, so I went and fetched it."

Nashi smiled. "Well, now that everything's taken care of, let's head back to the guild!"

Finally, Hisoka put on a weak smile. "Yeah!"

"By the way," Henri put in, "I just realized something."

Hisoka and Nashi turned toward her, curious as to what she was about to say.

"Since Hisoka has Aera, you never needed to take the boat. You could have easily flown."

Hisoka's and Nashi's jaws dropped.

"Seriously?!" they simultaneously exclaimed.

"I'm sorry!" Hisoka desperately apologized to Nashi.

"It's alright," Nashi whimpered. "Just try to remember."

They looked at each other for a moment.

"It's funny, isn't it?"

"What?" asked Hisoka.

"Our age group is kind of the fourth generation of Fairy Tail, and we now have a fourth-generation dragonslayer."

Hisoka thought about this for a moment. "I guess that is kind of funny."

Nashi smiled. "It's time for the adventures of the fourth generation!" she proclaimed as the three of them headed off into the distance.

* * *

 **Yeah, kind of tragic. And I'm considering changing the rating to T so that my characters can use more colorful language. Post a review to tell me what you think. And as always, hope you liked it!**


	4. Old Faces, New Faces

_Magnolia, Fiore_

* * *

"Why do you wear that scarf, anyway?"

Nashi looked at Hisoka. "What do you mean?"

"Well, I'm fairly certain that Natsu always wears that scarf. So why are you wearing it?"

"That's not his scarf," Scorpio corrected him.

Hisoka tilted his head in confusion.

"Why are you still here?" demanded Nashi.

"You never closed my gate," replied Scorpio.

Nashi made a surprised face, as if she had just realized this. She pulled out Scorpio's key. "Gate closure." She put the key away as Scorpio dematerialized. "Sheesh. No wonder I was feeling so low-energy for the past three days." She turned her head toward Hisoka and resumed the subject at hand.

"My dad wears a scarf, but not this one. This scarf was based off of his, but it's made from Acnologia's scales, while my dad's scarf is made from Igneel's."

"Wait…" Hisoka stared at the scarf some more. "Wasn't Acnologia a black dragon?"

Nashi gave him a "how stupid are you?" look.

"That scarf is white."

"The scales were bleached, idiot. What, did you think Igneel was white?"

Hisoka opened his mouth to say something, then closed it again. Then he looked away and mumbled, "I knew that."

"We're here," Henri notified them.

Hisoka looked up. Standing before him was a large building. Above the double-doored entrance was a sign reading _Fairy Tail_. He could hear a multitude of people chattering. The doors were wide open, so the three walked into the guild.

The room went silent as everyone watched Nashi walk in with the two newcomers. Then most of them immediately got back to whatever conversations they were having. There were a few faces Hisoka recognized from books, and many more that he'd never seen before.

"Oi! Emma!" a man shouted. Hisoka recognized him as Gajeel Redfox. "Stop eating the dishes!" Hisoka looked toward where he was shouting, and saw a girl with black hair of similar appearance to Gajeel's, who had a partially crushed steel plate in her mouth. She was glaring Gajeel, who was munching on a handful of silverware as if it were beef jerky, so Hisoka didn't understand why he was telling Emma to stop.

"Oi! Metal-head!" Nashi shouted at Emma.

Emma looked towards Nashi, then swallowed her mouthful of plate. "What is it, Flame-brain? Got yourself a boyfriend?"

Hisoka rolled his eyes, while Nashi snapped, "that's not it!" She strode over to Emma, who got up from her seat.

They leaned towards each other, their foreheads pressed against each other in a hostile manner. Hisoka could hear equally powerful hostile emotions coming off of both of them. He backed away to what he deemed a safe distance.

"Who's the guy, then?" asked Emma.

Nashi grinned. "Someone who knows who I am, but has never heard of you. Get it? I'm more famous than you!"

"Probably because you told him on a date," Emma teased.

Nashi seethed and punched Emma on the right cheek. Emma backed up a few steps, then regained her bearings and followed through with a similar punch.

"Idiots," Henri commented.

"Why do they all think we're a thing," groaned Hisoka.

"It's mostly just teasing," Henri replied. "And from what I can tell, these two love getting on each other's nerves."

"Tetsuryukon!" an iron pole extended from Emma's arm, slamming into Nashi and sending her flying straight into Gajeel.

"Oi! Watch yourself," Gajeel snapped.

"Shut up!" Nashi punched Gajeel with surprising force, sending him flying into another guy.

And, somehow, this turned into an all-out brawl.

Hisoka ducked as a table flew over his head. Henri was not so lucky. The table missed her, but then a stool slammed straight into her and sent her flying behind the bar, where two white-haired women were just standing there, watching. Hisoka recognized them as Mirajane and Lisanna Strauss.

"Henri!" Hisoka shouted, concern in his voice.

"What?" Henri floated up and hovered there as if nothing had happened.

Hisoka sighed in relief, then made his way toward the bar.

"Are you alright?" Mirajane asked Henri.

"I'm fine. Why?"

"You're supposed to dodge things when they fly at you," Hisoka reminded Henri, "not just sit there." He made his way toward the bar. A shadow loomed over him. He looked up to see a large, similarly white-haired man – Elfman – who had just been sent flying. "Whuaaaaaaaah!" Hisoka shouted in surprise, and punched the man, sending him crashing straight back into the person who had punched him in the first place. "Get away from me!" Hisoka shouted, then continued towards the bar, dodging tables, benches, and people.

"Excuse me." Hisoka grabbed Mirajane and Lisanna's attention. "I'd like to join your guild."

"Oh?" Mirajane smiled at him. "A newcomer. Is the cat with you?"

"I am," Henri replied. "However, I'm going to wait until tomorrow before joining."

"Huh? Why?" Hisoka was confused.

"You'll see," Henri replied, grinning disconcertingly.

"You idiots!"

Hisoka turned his attention towards the guild doors, where there was a red-haired woman who looked to be in her thirties glaring at everyone, with a face that terrified Hisoka, who was not easily intimidated by mere looks.

"I go to attend the Guild Masters' regular meeting," the woman continued. "I'm gone for one day, and this is what I come back to?!"

Lisanna smiled. "Welcome back, Master Erza."

Erza turned towards the bar, then noticed Hisoka. She strode over to him.

"And who might you be?" she demanded.

"I-I'm Hisoka," Hisoka stammered.

"He's here to join the guild," Mira explained.

Erza looked at Mirajane, then back at Hisoka. Her terrifying glare instantly turned into a friendly smile. "Welcome to the guild!" she greeted, then turned to Henri. "And what about you?"

"I'm not joining until tomorrow," Henri replied.

"Oh?" Erza's smile transformed once more, this time into an evil grin. "So you know about it?"

"W-What's 'it'?" Hisoka stammered in fear.

"You'll find out soon enough," replied Mira.

Hisoka was then quickly distracted by the sound of footsteps behind him. He turned to see two people walking into the building. One of them had blue, spiky hair, and wore a similar outfit to Hisoka, except that his overcoat was white with black trim, and the pants were dark gray. His overcoat was missing a sleeve, and on his exposed bicep was a blue Fairy Tail guildmark, and he was roughly the same height as Nashi. The other was a bit taller – close to Hisoka's height – and wore a red vest with white, fluffy trim. His pants and sandals were the same as Nashi's, and he was carrying a girl who looked a lot like the blue-haired guy walking beside him, though she appeared to be a bit smaller. She was wearing a similar outfit to Nashi, except that her pants were not quite as baggy, and they were dark blue.

"What did you do to my daughter!" Gajeel jumped up and leaned in close, glaring at the red-haired boy, whose eyes widened in surprise, as well as the girl's eyes. Then Gajeel was met by an iron club to the face from the blue-haired boy.

"Mind your manners!" the boy snapped. "As a matter of fact, Akane is the reason we're not both dead!" Gajeel fell to the floor in response to the blow, stunned.

"Sheesh," the girl huffed. "Overprotectiveness is one thing, but that was a bit much." She looked around. "At least we got here after the brawl."

"Okay, your father was a bit over the line." A petite, blue-haired woman that Hisoka hadn't noticed before walked over to the girl. Hisoka recognized her as Levy Redfox. "However, he does have a point." Concern rose in her voice. "What happened to you two out there?"

The girl sighed. "I was crushed by a dragon." She indicated the boy who was carrying her. "Akane saved us both from getting killed." Everyone's eyes widened in surprise as she said the word "dragon." There were a few surprised gasps throughout the guild hall, and Hisoka could hear people murmuring.

"A dragon?"

"I thought all the dragons were gone."

Just then, Gajeel got back up. "Sorry for the misunderstanding." He rubbed the bruise that had appeared on his face.

Erza walked over to them. "A dragon, you say?"

Akane nodded.

Erza inspected the girl Akane was holding.

"I'm alright," the girl insisted.

"If what you mean by 'alright' is 'no longer at risk of death'," Erza replied. "You definitely need to see Porlyuchka."

"We know," the blue-haired boy agreed. "We were actually going to ask where she lives."

"Wait," Akane broke in, "she's your medical advisor, and you don't even know where she lives? I've been carrying your sister for six straight hours, Merlin! My arms are getting tired."

Merlin rolled his eyes. "Just hand her to me. I'm pretty sure I've regained enough strength by now."

"Or you could just set me down," the girl exasperated. "You do realize there are benches and tables in here, some of which are still upright?"

"Oh, yeah." The girl rolled her eyes in exasperation as Merlin removed the luggage from his back and set it on a table. Akane then set the girl down on the table in a way that she could lean against the luggage.

"Akane?" Hisoka queried. "As in Akane Skofnung?"

Akane looked up at Hisoka. His eyes widened.

"Hisoka?"

The two stood there, staring at each other. A draft came in through the doors, blowing at their clothes. Magic power condensed around both of them

"Akane!"

"Hisoka!"

The two rushed toward each other, grinning excitedly as their right fists slammed into each other. There was a shockwave as the magical power gathering around them dispersed.

"You've changed so much over the past eleven years!" Hisoka marveled.

"You're one to talk!" Akane responded. "You grew your freakin' hair out!"

Hisoka smiled. Their fists separated.

"And are you one of the Blue Steel twins?!" Hisoka turned to face Merlin.

Merlin nodded. "I'm Merlin." He pointed to the girl resting on the table. "And this is William."

Hisoka looked over. "Wait… you're a girl?"

"You got a problem with that?" demanded William.

"No, no…" Hisoka threw up his hands in a pleading gesture. "Just unexpected, that's all. Anyway," he reverted the subject, "what do you mean 'crushed by a dragon'? Don't tell me Ishugar was being clumsy again!"

Instantly, Akane's smile faded.

"Wait a minute…" Hisoka began.

"That's right. You didn't know."

"Huh?"

"Ishugar died," Akane murmured, "ten years ago."

Hisoka stood there in shocked silence. His smile faded.

"I'm sorry," he finally said.

"Don't be," Akane assured him. "It's not your fault."

"So that dragon that crushed William…"

"…is the dragon that killed him," Akane finished for Hisoka.

Hisoka looked down at the ground, then back at Akane. "I know how you feel."

Akane's eyes widened. "Don't tell me…"

Hisoka nodded. "Flumentia also died, seven years ago. And I found out two days ago."

Akane dipped his head. "That's too bad. She was a fine dragon."

Hisoka looked towards the bar, where Mira was getting out a box with the guild crest on it. "Anyway," he changed the subject, "I was just about to join this guild."

"Really? Me, too!"

Hisoka smiled. "Then I guess we get to join together."

Just then, a long-haired gray tabby cat flew in through the doors.

"Thomas?" Hisoka queried. "You're here, too?"

Thomas nodded. "Akane and I have been sticking together a while. I'm joining Fairy Tail as well."

"Well, there you are," Akane harshly commented. "Where did you disappear to?"

"Kardia Cathedral caught my interest," Thomas explained. "I decided to explore the place."

Somebody tapped Hisoka on the shoulder. He turned to see Erza pointing to the bar. "Are you ready to officially join the guild?" she asked.

Hisoka looked at Mira, who had now opened the box. Inside was an array of color-coded magic stamps. "Yep," he confirmed. "Come on, Akane."

They walked over to the bar and sat on some stools that had somehow survived the brawl.

"Now," Mira began, "what color guildmark would each of you like? Here are the ones you can choose from."

Hisoka examined the array, then selected a blue that was the same as Erza's. Akane picked a vibrant red that matched his curly hair.

"And where would you like them?"

"I'd like mine here." Akane indicated his left shoulder.

Hisoka opened his overcoat, revealing a dark blue undershirt, and indicated a spot directly below his right shoulder. "I'll have mine here."

Mira took the red stamp, then pressed it against Akane's shoulder. There was a brief glow, then the stamp was removed, and Akane had a red Fairy Tail guildmark. Then Mira put it back in the box, and pulled out the blue stamp that Hisoka had picked. She then did the same thing on the spot Hisoka had indicated, and Hisoka was now sporting the guild crest in a deep blue.

Mirajane smiled. "You're now officially members of the mage guild Fairy Tail."

"Oi, Thomas!" Akane called. "What about you?"

Thomas finished listening to whatever Henri was whispering in his ear, then looked at Akane and grinned evilly. "I think I'll wait until tomorrow."

"Say, Master?" Erza turned in response to William, who was still on the table, leaning against Merlin's luggage. "I don't think I can be in the race."

Erza raised an eyebrow. "Why not?"

"Can't you see? I can't currently walk, or even sit up without assistance."

"Ah," Erza nodded, as if she had only just realized this. "And using magic would harm your ability to heal. I'll take you to see Porlyuchka. Mira! I'm entrusting you with setting up the race."

"Right," Mira nodded.

"Wait… race?!" Hisoka exclaimed. "As in the 24-hour Endurance Road Race?"

Mira smiled.

"How could I forget about that?!"

"What's the 24-hour Race?" asked Akane.

"Exactly what it sounds like," Hisoka groaned. "The only rule is 'no flying magic'."

Akane's jaw dropped. "And we have to participate?"

Hisoka nodded. "It's mandatory for all Fairy Tail wizards."

"Have fun! I know I will."

Hisoka glared at Henri in response to her comment. "Don't you dare pull any pranks during the race."

* * *

Hisoka looked around. There were quite a few spectators, as well as a multitude of Fairy Tail wizards at the starting line. He focused on one particular mage who stood next to him. He could sense an interesting magic coming off of the ginger-haired man; speed increase magic. _Well, isn't he lucky?_ Hisoka thought. Then he had an idea. _If I could time it right…_

"On your marks!" called Mirajane.

 _Yeah. This should work. My reaction speed is quick enough._

"Get set!"

Hisoka grinned at his idea. Henri saw him and smiled, curious to see what he was about to do.

"See something interesting?" inquired Thomas.

"I think Hisoka just got an idea," Henri replied. "I'm interested in knowing what it is."

"Go!"

A cloud of dust engulfed the starting line. When the dust had cleared, Hisoka and Jet were gone. Everyone else had been knocked to the ground by the powerful gusts, but they quickly got to their feet and took off.

* * *

Porlyusica looked up from her studies.

She walked over to her door and opened it. Then she stepped outside, looked around, and saw a familiar red-haired woman carrying a younger bluenette.

She sighed. "What is it this time?"

William smiled in a sort of guilty way. "I got crushed by a dragon."

Porlyusica raised an eyebrow. "You look a lot better than that."

"It was a month and a half ago," William explained.

"Still, you're incredibly lucky."

William smiled again. "According to Merlin, there was some healing magic nearby. I was about this close to dying." She held up a hand, moving her thumb and forefinger really close together.

"To be honest," Erza broke in, "it might be a good idea to stop sending you two on ten-year quests. It seems to be a bit much."

William rolled her eyes. "We really couldn't have foreseen that a dragon would show up."

"True," Erza acknowledged. "But neither of you are even officially S-class. I know you both become more powerful when you're together, but…"

"You can discuss that later!" Porlyuchka snapped. "Now get inside." She turned and headed back into her medical room, then stepped aside as Erza carried William in. "Set her down there." She pointed towards a bed at the opposite end of the room, and Erza obeyed. "Now get out."

Erza opened her mouth to object.

"Get out!" Porlyuchka grabbed a broom and used it to shove Erza. "You know I hate humans! Scat!"

"Right!" Erza dodged another blow from Porlyuchka's broom, and went on her way.

"She has a lot of energy," Erza commented to herself, "considering she's over a century old."

"I heard that! Now git!"

"Sorry!" Erza sped up her pace, this time being very careful not to think out loud. _Not to mention her hearing_.

"Wait," puzzled William, back in Porlyuchka's medical room, "if you hate humans…"

"You got a problem with a human who hates other humans?" Porlyuchka interrupted. "I happen to not like the way they smell."

"What I was about to say was," William corrected Porlyuchka, "if you hate humans, why are you a medic?"

"Dead humans smell worse," the old woman promptly replied, showing no sympathy. "I can actually be around living humans for a while."

William nodded in understanding. "I can see that, but I'm not sure how that's a reason."

"If I save human lives, they don't die."

"But if they die, you usually don't have to be around."

Porlyusica tsked in annoyance at her patient. "Enough with that. I need to examine you." She picked up a small lacrima and set it on the nightstand next to William. She then picked up a rectangular lacrima screen – roughly the height and width of one of her medical texts, and a display popped up of Will's skeleton, muscles and internal organs. "It seems there's still quite a bit of damage," Porlyuchka observed. "The good news is, you'll be able to walk in about a month."

"So Thomas's prediction was a bit off," William sighed. "But at least I'll recover."

"That would be the bad news," Porlyusica warned her. "It's unlikely that you'll fully recover, which means your physical and magical abilities are weakened. I'm going to recommend to Erza that you not be considered for the S-class advancement trials, and that you not be required to be in the race in the future. You also cannot go on S-class quests with Merlin."

William's eyes widened. "But without me…"

"I know," Porlyusica interrupted. "You're both more powerful when together. However, you're in no condition to go on jobs, and you'll probably never be in any condition to go on S-class quests."

Will frowned in disappointment. "I-I don't know how he'll cope without me. We've always gone on jobs together. He's really not that powerful on his own. Neither of us are."

"I know." Porlyusica knelt down and placed a hand on William's shoulder. "It's going to be almost as hard on him as it is on you. However, there comes a time in everyone's life where they only have themselves to rely on. In fact, sometimes the whole world might turn against you. But eventually, one has to be on their own, and that is an opportunity to grow. Not when you're relying entirely on your crutch, but when you let go." She stood up and looked out the window at the tombstone near her clothesline. "For me, it was when I decided to live alone, and had to be self-dependent."

William realized what Porlyusica was looking at. "Why did you decide to leave him?"

"More things than I can count," Porlyusica replied, continuing to look out the window. "Our son Ivan got banished from the guild, our team disbanded and headed their separate ways, and a lot of other emotional things."

William smiled. "I wish I'd known Master Makarov better. Merlin and I only have vague memories of him."

Porlyusica looked away from Makarov's grave and smiled back. "He was quite something." She looked around the room. "Anyway, as your doctor, I promise to do everything I can to help you recover as much as possible."

* * *

"Get off of me!" Jet shouted in annoyance, struggling not to break his pace as he tried to smack Hisoka off on random obstacles.

"Never!" Hisoka kept his arms wrapped around Jet's waist in a death grip, leaving a cushion of pressurized water between his feet and the ground to reduce friction. "You keep winning this and it's boring!"

"How the heck did you even grab onto me?!" Jet exclaimed incredulously. "You shouldn't have fast enough reactions!"

"Well, lucky me." Hisoka looked behind him. "By the way, it seems I've slowed us down."

Jet looked behind him. A horde of wizards was running behind them, and they weren't gaining much ground.

"Just get off me, you twit!" Jet came to a halt in an attempt to make things easier, desperately kicking and clawing at Hisoka. Then he managed to get him off, and quickly got away.

"Shinkuryu no Hokou!" Hisoka saw a blinding red flash coming towards him, and leapt off of the trail just in time. Everyone else on the track, including Jet, was engulfed in Akane's breath weapon. Hisoka skidded down the steep slope, then righted himself and slowed to a stop. He could see Akane running past as he climbed back up. Then he clambered back onto the track and took off after his friend.

Suddenly, Hisoka's vision turned strange. His view of what was ahead of him flattened. He stopped running, and everything turned back to normal, though something was still off about his surroundings. Every movement he tried to make was much slower than it felt, and the body parts he was moving looked warped.

Then everything returned to normal, and a red-haired boy about two years younger than Hisoka ran ahead of him "Sorry! Coming through!" He charged through the crowd of disoriented wizards.

 _So that's the unfamiliar magic I smelled_ , Hisoka thought. _But what even was that?_

"Kawatatsu no Udesuishin!" Hisoka extended his arms behind him and put on an extra burst of speed using the pressurized water.

* * *

"I'm back," Erza greeted. Mira turned in response.

"Our new members are interesting," Mira mused. "Hisoka somehow managed to grab onto Jet at the starting line, and Akane incapacitated a lot of people with his breath weapon. Most of them have come to by now, though."

Erza looked at the lacrima vision.

"Elkhart did that thing again, didn't he?"

Mira nodded. "He's hard to detect thanks to his magic, so I'm not sure how far he's gotten."

"He's quite inventive, isn't he?" commented Erza. "It takes quite something to invent new ways to use existing magic, let alone come up with a completely original magic."

"Well, he is your son, after all."

Erza grinned evilly. "And that's why it would be interesting to see him lose."

"I do not like that look."

* * *

Hisoka collapsed next to the river, exhausted. Then he leaned over, sucking in some of the water, and felt his strength returning.

"Resting in the middle of the race, are we?"

Hisoka looked over and glared at Henri. "You can shut up."

"Is something the matter?"

"Oh, let me think… maybe when you decided to steal this…" he held up a wyvern scale. "And made me get it while you were flying."

"I was testing your jumping ability," Henri informed him. "There are times, such as this race, at which you won't be able to fly."

Hisoka pouted.

"By the way, what you did at the beginning was quite interesting."

"Thanks." Hisoka waded in, then sat down on the riverbed, letting the current wash away his fatigue.

"So how's the guild so far?"

Hisoka sighed. "Well, it's really fun, and a bit overly rowdy. And I could probably stand being in this race once a year. The job we went on wasn't so fun, but I imagine there are both fun and not-so-fun jobs available."

Henri nodded. "That would be assumed."

"Speaking of that job," Hisoka said, changing the subject, "I've been thinking about the things I've found out."

"Such as your dragon's death?"

"Not just that; also what Soren said about a 'new cause', and Flutlogia's legacy being gone. I have a bad feeling about what's going on back there. And then there's the frost dragon that Akane said had been terrorizing his continent." He dipped his head into the water, then sat back up.

"You never told me much about Flutlogia."

"He's the founder of the society I grew up in," explained Hisoka. "It was a society on the far west continent in which dragons, humans and wolves coexisted."

"Wolves?"

"They're different from the wolves here," Hisoka replied. "They're more similar to dragons and humans. They even invented the technique that eventually gave rise to the lost generation of dragonslayers." He sucked up more water, then continued. "Anyway, Flutlogia, the first river dragon, founded this society, and we lived in harmony. Flutlogia was then killed by Acnologia 200 years ago."

"Acnologia?"

Hisoka nodded. "Fortunately, there were enough dragons to drive him out, but a lot of them were killed in the process, not just Flutlogia."

"I see."

"Anyway, since I'm the bearer of his soul, I feel that I have a duty to protect his legacy. And not only that. If his legacy is gone, that would be the society he built, which means that my friends back there could be in trouble."

"Or maybe they all betrayed you, just like Soren."

Hisoka shook his head. "I don't think they all would. My point is, I want to save them."

Henri raised an eyebrow. "You're going to stop a bunch of dragons, humans and wolves?"

"Not now," Hisoka replied. "Not the way I am now. I need to get stronger. And Fairy Tail would be a great place to do that. It'll probably take years, though. I hope I'm not too late by then."

"I'm sure you can do it," Henri reassured.

"Well, enough resting. I have a race to avoid losing." Hisoka sucked in some more of the water, then jumped to his feet. He pointed to Henri. "Don't you dare interfere, and stop smiling like that." He stuck the wyvern scale in his belt. "Kawatatsu no Udesuishin!" he took off.

* * *

Akane smiled. _Not bad for someone who just joined the guild,_ he thought to himself. He could see the finish line just up ahead. "Shinkuryu no Kouen!" He created an explosion of crimson energy behind him, launching himself forward. "Shinkuryu no Kagizume!" Both his feet lit up, tearing through the ground beneath him and reducing his friction.

"Oh, no, you don't!"

Akane looked behind him to discover that he was rapidly losing ground to Hisoka, who had just now not even been within sight. "Shinkuryu no Kouen!" Akane released another explosion, hoping to both propel himself forward and knock Hisoka back.

Hisoka leaped up, dodging the blast. Then he produced jets of high-speed water from his feet, shooting directly at Akane and slamming into him.

"You jerk!" Akane got up and pounced on Hisoka, who had been stunned by the attack. Then Hisoka responded by fighting back, and they exchanged blows and kicks, ignoring the other red-haired boy as he ran past them.

Then Hisoka managed to get a solid grip on Akane's ankle. He spun around, giving Akane little time to react as he swung him around and let go…

…sending him flying straight over the finish line.

Akane ignored that Hisoka had just accidentally given him second place, and ran back towards him. Suddenly, they were both grabbed by the backs of their collars.

"Would you just finish the race?!" Nashi fumed. "You're both really annoying me!"

 _You're one to talk,_ Hisoka silently argued as he and Akane struggled out of Nashi's grip. _You fight Emma all the time for pretty much no reason._

"Anyway," Nashi continued, turning to Hisoka, "it looks like you got fourth place, since you decided to continue your fight until I got here. Not bad."

Just then, Gajeel ran across the finish line, Levy riding on his shoulders.

"They're certainly a cute couple," Hisoka commented.

Nashi nodded. "They're the only two that continue to team up during the race. Everyone else has a sort of every-man-for-himself mindset."

They all watched as wizard after wizard dashed over the finish line, the last one being Bickslow.

"Stupid thick clothing!" he shouted.

"You know, there's the option of dressing differently," Lisanna suggested to him.

"I forgot to change for the race, okay?" Bickslow testified.

"Whatever the reason," Erza blew him off, "you got last place, and you therefore get the punishment."

"Punishment, punishment!" Bickslow's dolls echoed.

"Oh, you're taking her side now?!" Bickslow snapped at the dolls, which responded with a creepy laugh. Bickslow pouted. "Alright," he conceded. "What's it going to be this time?"

"Let's see, your punishment…" Erza paused, trying to think of something, then gave up. "You will be doing _that_."

Hisoka couldn't see Bickslow's face, as it was covered by a helmet, but he could hear shocked, fearful, and annoyed brainwaves. "Come up with something more creative!" he protested.

"No can do," argued Erza. "I can't come up with any good ideas."

"What's 'that'?" Hisoka asked.

"You don't need to know," Nashi replied. "And you really don't want to."

Hisoka nodded. "I guess I'll take your word for it." He thought about the conversation he'd had with Henri a few hours back. "I've got a few things on my mind that I'd like to process. And Henri and I need to find someplace to live."

Nashi turned towards him. "I can help you with that."

"Oh?"

"You could live in the place my mom used to live in before she moved in with my dad," Nashi explained. "It's a really nice place, and the rent is only 70,000 jewel per month."

Hisoka thought about it. "Alright," he affirmed. "I think I'll check it out."

* * *

 **So, yeah. I decided to go for some nostalgia here. In the next chapter I intend to reveal why I'm calling the story "Dragon King." It's not quite what you're probably thinking.**


	5. Dragon King

Hisoka stepped out of the shower, absorbing the water droplets into his skin so as to dry off more quickly. He then picked up his gray boxer shorts and put them on, followed by his beige pants and his dark blue tank top. He looked at his right arm, enjoying the sight of the blue Fairy Tail guildmark.

"It's nice to finally have this," Hisoka said to himself.

Then he smelled something, and sighed.

"What are you doing here?" he asked as he opened the door to see Nashi sitting on the couch.

Nashi shrugged. "I guess I just wanted to check on how you're settling in."

"Did Henri invite you in?"

"Huh? No, I think Henri's left to run some errands or something. Her scent's not that strong at the moment."

Hisoka slapped his forehead in annoyance. "You don't walk into somebody else's living quarters uninvited!" He strode over to the couch, and before Nashi could respond, he had lifted her over his shoulder and was carrying her toward the window.

"Hey!" she started at the sudden action. "Put me down!"

Hisoka ignored her and jumped out the window, gliding down to the cobblestone path and plopping Nashi down. Then he flew back up, dodging a blast of fire from Nashi.

"I hate being picked up!" Nashi yelled at Hisoka.

"I hate people walking into my house uninvited!" Hisoka retorted.

Nashi just glared back at him.

"If you want to come in," Hisoka suggested, "you can ask to be let in. That's how walking into people's houses works."

Nashi pouted for a moment, then gave in. "May I please come in?"

"Why, certainly!" Hisoka responded with mock enthusiasm. "Come on in."

Nashi walked up to the building, then leapt up, grabbing some crevices in the wall. She then climbed up and clambered in through the window.

"It would also be nice if you could use the door," Hisoka added.

"Doors, windows… same difference." Nashi plopped herself down in her original spot on the couch.

Hisoka sighed. "What do you want?" he asked, then opened his closet, pulling out his blue overcoat. He slipped into his crown leather boots on the floor, tucking in the hems of his pants.

"Well, I actually wanted to ask you something," Nashi admitted.

"Yes?" Hisoka slipped his arms into the sleeves of his overcoat, then closed it up. He then grabbed a black leather belt out of his closet.

"I… was wondering if… we could form a team?" Nashi paused a few times midsentence, as if nervous. Hisoka could even hear nervousness coming from her brain.

"A team?" Hisoka inquired as he tightened his belt around his waist. "What do you mean?"

"Well," Nashi pondered how to explain it, "it's basically a loose agreement that we'll help each other out when we go on jobs. Individual members of the guild do it when they work really well together."

Hisoka pondered this as he pulled his hair back into a ponytail. "Are you sure we could effectively work together?" he questioned as he slipped on his dark green headband. "I mean, we use to different elements that absolutely hate each other. I'm not sure that would work too well."

"It can work," Nashi argued. "My dad and Gray formed a team with Erza and Lucy, and they became the strongest team in the guild. They use fire and ice, respectively."

Hisoka looked at Nashi for a moment, thinking of a good response. "I'll consider it later," he decided. "Right now I'm going to visit a tailor."

"A tailor? What for?"

Hisoka undid his overcoat and indicated the guildmark on his right arm. "I don't normally leave my arms exposed," he explained, then closed his overcoat back up. "I'm going to have the guildmark sewn on right here." He indicated the left breast of his overcoat. "That way, I can proudly display the guildmark without having to change the way I dress."

Nashi smiled, then jumped to her feet in a lively manner. "Well, do you know where there is a tailor in this city?"

Hisoka opened his mouth to speak, then shook his head.

"Come on!" Nashi hopped out the window, landing gracefully on her feet. "I'll show you."

* * *

Merlin burst through the door. "Is she alright?!" he frantically demanded.

Porlyusica got a look on her face like she wanted to kick him out, then sighed. "Ask her yourself." She stepped aside, and Merlin strode over to the bed where William was sitting, then sat down next to her.

"I'm fine," William reassured him. "I'll be able to walk again in a month."

Porlyusica stepped outside so as to give them some space.

"Thank goodness," Merlin sighed.

"But I probably won't make a full recovery," William added. "So we can't go on S-class quests anymore."

Merlin's eyes widened. "But… I'm not that powerful on my own…"

William nodded. "I'm sorry."

Merlin lowered his head. "I guess it is kind of my fault."

William raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"If I hadn't persuaded us to fight that dragon, or if I'd attacked him when he picked you up…"

William placed a finger on Merlin's mouth, shushing him. "It's not your fault, or Akane's. It's the Dragon that decided to crush me, and you had a concussion. Don't blame yourself."

Tears formed in Merlin's eyes, and he leaned over and wrapped his arms around his sister, sniffing and trying very hard not to start just outright bawling.

William placed a hand on Merlin's head. "You will learn to cope without me. I know you can do it."

Merlin nodded.

"We both will," she added. "We're not Gajeel and Levy's kids for nothing. This is definitely something we can handle."

"Yeah."

Just then, the door opened. Merlin and William looked up to see Emma walking in.

"How bad is it?" Emma asked.

"I'll be able to walk again in about a month," William replied.

"By the way, how did you get in?" Merlin inquired, changing the subject. "I thought Porlyusica wasn't allowing you to be here at all."

"I told her why I'm here," Emma explained. "Concern for a sibling is quite different from finding a place to train."

Merlin shrugged. "I can agree with that."

"Anyway," Emma turned to face William, "it's good that you'll be able to walk again. Porlyusica told me you probably wouldn't fully recover, so I was a bit worried."

"Well, it's true that I probably won't fully recover," William agreed. "However, I will learn to cope." Her tone changed to determined.

Emma smiled. "I know you will. You're my little sister." She sat down on the bed and placed a comforting hand on William's head. "And you're a member of Fairy Tail."

William smiled at her sister's supportive words.

"Well," Merlin stood up, "we should be going before Porlyusica decides to get rid of us by force. Also, I'd like to go on a job or two."

"Good idea," Emma agreed. She stood up and turned to face William. "We'll visit you when we can."

William nodded as they walked out the door. "See you."

* * *

"That'll be 10,000 jewel." The tailor extended a hand.

"Uh," Hisoka fumbled through his wallet, "I only have Alvarez currency."

"What about the reward for that job?" Nashi asked.

"I forgot it at home," Hisoka trailed off as his voice was suppressed by embarrassment. "I'm sorry."

Nashi sighed. "I'll pay for it. I owe you for that time in Alvarez."

"Thanks."

"This will take a few days," the tailor explained as she filed through her supplies.

"A few days?" Hisoka inquired. "Why?"

"Well, for one thing, I don't use magic. It feels more natural this way."

"Yeah, but _with_ magic, it takes an hour or two at the most. Think of the potential."

The tailor glared at him. "Don't tell me how to do my job. I'm satisfied with what I currently make."

Hisoka's skin crawled at the hostile tone. "S-Sorry."

"Let's go." Nashi grabbed his left arm and pulled him out the door.

"Oi!"

"I'll show you around."

"I don't normally go out dressed like this!" Hisoka complained, indicating the dark blue tank top and beige pants. "It looks weird!"

"Sheesh! It looks fine."

"It doesn't look right."

"Stop complaining. You're just not used to it. Besides, unless you have another overcoat just like the one in there…" she indicated the tailor's shop they had just visited. "…or some other alternate outfit, you're stuck with that look for the next few days."

Hisoka pouted in annoyance.

"If you like, I could summon Cancer to help with your hairstyle."

"No, thanks." Hisoka looked down at his outfit. "I guess it's okay."

Nashi raised an eyebrow. "Is that really all you have to wear?"

Hisoka nodded. "You didn't notice for the two weeks that we were on that boat?"

"Well, you tend to not notice things when you're distracted by an upset stomach."

"True. But yeah. This is all I have."

"Odd," Nashi commented. "If you wear only one outfit, I would expect you to smell worse."

"Uh, thanks?" Hisoka tried to decide whether that was a compliment or an insult, then gave up.

Thankfully, as if reading his mind, Nashi clarified for him. "You smell awful, by the way."

"I just took a shower!"

"And what did you do in there, just sprinkle a bit of water on yourself and get out?"

"I just like the feeling of the water." As a matter of fact, that was exactly what he had done in there.

"That doesn't take care of the smell," Nashi explained. "Now let's go clothes shopping."

"You're changing the subject like it's nothing." Hisoka followed Nashi as she started off down the street.

Nashi didn't respond, and they continued on until they came to a clothing shop. Nashi then opened the door and they walked in.

Hisoka froze in surprise as the various smells overwhelmed him. Clothing racks with clothes of all shapes and colors lined the shop, and the fabrics and dyes all seemed to project their scents straight into his nose, preventing him from even thinking.

"That was my first reaction to this place, too," Nashi said, as if reading Hisoka's mind. "There are quite a number of smells here. Now, let's pick you some clothes. Oi!" She gripped Hisoka's shoulders and shook him, causing him to snap out of his scent-induced daze. "Come on."

"Right!" Hisoka followed Nashi through the store, checking out some articles of clothing similar to what he was wearing. He picked up a blue overcoat that looked just like his, except without the trim.

"Nope!" Nashi snatched it away from him and placed it back on the rack. "You're not just going to wear the same thing every day, and you don't need copies of outer layers." She grabbed Hisoka by the arm and pulled him towards another rack. "How about this?" She pulled out a black T-shirt with a yin-yang symbol on it, except that it showed spirals of fire and water instead of the traditional black and white.

"Since when were you choosing what I wear?" Hisoka demanded.

"Since I decided to pay for it. Now try it on."

Hisoka took the shirt and looked around. Locating the door to a dressing room, he started to head off.

"Hold on. where are you going?"

"To the dressing room?"

"No. That'll take forever."

Hisoka stood there, wondering what to do.

"Go on," Nashi prompted. "Try it on."

"We're in the middle of a store."

"And we'll be here longer if you take longer," Nashi argued, completely missing Hisoka's point. "Now try it on."

Hisoka looked around, and reluctantly took off his tank top. Then, nervous about showing off his bare chest, quickly put on the T-shirt.

"There. That wasn't so hard, was it?"

"I look ridiculous," complained Hisoka.

"You look fine," Nashi argued. "You're just not used to it. Ooh! Here's a vest you should try on!"

"I am not liking this," Hisoka moaned.

* * *

"So let me get this straight," Henri implored. "34 years ago, you hatched from an egg that just fell from the sky out of nowhere?"

Thomas nodded. "I know it's hard to believe, but that's what my adopted family told me."

"That's the exact same thing that happened to me!" Henri marveled. "On the exact same date, too."

"Seriously?"

"I know, right?"

"We have so much in common."

Henri took a bite out of her fish. "Like, neither of us are very human-oriented, but we still both have human companions."

"Not to mention they're both dragonslayers."

"Mm." Henri took a sip of her tea. "According to Erza, that's just a thing that tends to happen, where an exceed and a dragonslayer become companions

"I wonder why." Thomas munched on a steak.

"Say…" Henri looked out the restaurant window. "Isn't that Hisoka and Nashi?"

Thomas looked at the two humans passing by, then covered his mouth in an attempt to hold back his laughter. "What is he wearing?"

"I'm guessing something Nashi picked out for him," Henri theorized. "That's definitely not something he would choose for himself."

* * *

"I don't like this at all."

"Oh, stop complaining," Nashi reassured Hisoka. "You look great."

Hisoka looked down at the blue-grey T-shirt, black shorts and brown sandals. "It doesn't feel right. And it certainly doesn't look right."

Nashi rolled her eyes. "Again, you're just not used to it. Ooh! You know what would make it look even better?" She took off her scarf, and before Hisoka could react, reached over and threw it around his neck.

Hisoka clenched his teeth in disgust. "Now I don't look right _and_ I can't hear anything!"

"That's odd," Nashi pondered. "It shouldn't block out sound."

Hisoka pulled the scarf off. "Well, all I was able to hear there was your voice and our heartbeaats."

Nashi tilted her head in confusion as she took the scarf back. "Uh, that's all there is _to_ hear."

"And also our thoughts," Hisoka pointed out.

"Wait, what?! You're reading my mind?"

"No, no!" Hisoka threw up his hands in a pleading gesture. "It's impossible to do that without special hearing magic. I can hear your thoughts, but I can't tell what you're thinking."

"That… doesn't make any sense."

Hisoka sighed. "I can hear brain activity," he explained, "which means I can distinguish between basic thought processes, such as emotions, but I can't actually hear any words."

"How does that work?"

"Okay, the brain thinks using electricity, and I can hear that electricity buzzing around."

"Ah. So basically, every brain has a weak version of Laxus's magic?"

Hisoka took a moment to ponder this, then answered. "That's a weird way to put it, but yeah. In fact, Laxus does have an incredibly loud brain."

"I'm telling him you said that."

"Uh, sure." Hisoka waved off the comment. "But anyway, that scarf was somehow muffling those sounds, placing me in an uncomfortable silence."

"I see. Sorry about that."

"It's alright," Hisoka reassured her. "I can understand you not knowing that."

"Mm."

They continued walking until they got to Hisoka's apartment building. Hisoka used his free hand to fumble around in his pocket, producing a key, which he then used to open the door.

The two wizards walked into Hisoka's main apartment room, then set the shopping bags down on the floor.

"Alright!" Nashi proclaimed. "Now take your clothes off. I'm going to teach you how to bathe properly."

"Wait, what?!"

"Is there a problem?"

"I'm not taking my clothes off in front of you!" Hisoka barked. "Why would you even suggest that?!"

"Why not?"

"'Why not'? 'Why… not'?!" Hisoka stared at Nashi incredulously. "Guys and girls don't just casually undress in each other's presence, that's why not! You didn't know that?"

"I mean, I think I heard that somewhere, at some point? I only remember important things, okay?"

"That's super-important!"

"I get it! Sheesh." She opened the door, stepped into the hallway, and knocked on the door to the adjacent apartment.

"What do you want?" demanded a muffled voice on the other side.

"Come on out, Elkhart."

The door opened, and Hisoka could see the same red-haired boy who had won the race yesterday.

"Will you just tell me what you want?"

"Well, you see," Nashi explained, "I was going to teach Hisoka how to bathe properly, but he seems uncomfortable with undressing around a girl, so I was wondering if you could maybe teach him for me."

"Uh, I did not agree to this," Hisoka protested.

"You agreed by not knowing how to bathe properly," Nashi asserted.

Elkhart raised an eyebrow at Hisoka. "You're a river dragonslayer and you don't know how to clean yourself?"

"Obviously not," Nashi put in. "He smells terrible."

Elkhart stepped into Hisoka's room, then looked him up and down. Then he leaned in and took a sniff. He turned to Nashi "You're absolutely right," he acknowledged. "I'll do it." He turned back to Hisoka. "Come on. Nashi, you should go now."

Nashi nodded and climbed out the window.

"Alright! Now…" Elkhart opened the door to Hisoka's bathroom. "Come on."

Hisoka reluctantly followed Elkhart into the bathroom.

"Now where're your soap and shampoo?"

"Soup and what?"

Elkhart sighed. "I can now see why you need teaching. Hold on. I'll go get mine." He left the room and headed over to his apartment. After about half a minute, he came back carrying a bottle and an odd-smelling object that was sort of shaped like a smooth stone, like from a riverbed. He set down the bottle and held up the odd-smelling object.

"This," he explained, "is known as 'soap'. It helps you get rid of dirt and other things that could result in infections and terrible smells. And this…" he set down the soap and held up the bottle. "…is 'shampoo'. You do not want to wash your hair with soap. For your hair, you use shampoo. Now, let's get started. Off with it."

"You're just as annoying as Nashi," Hisoka grumbled.

* * *

Nashi looked up. Walking through the guild doors were Emma and Merlin. Merlin was covered in several bandages. They headed over to an empty table and sat down.

Nashi got up and walked over to them.

"This isn't the time." Emma looked up at Nashi.

"Even I can see that," Nashi indicated. "What happened?"

"I failed," Merlin replied. "I tried going on an ordinary job, and I completely failed."

"No, you didn't," Emma argued. "The job got done."

"Only because you were there." Merlin got up and headed for the doors. "I'm going to go spend some time alone."

"What's with him?" asked Nashi.

"He's worked up that he couldn't do a simple job without me doing most of the fighting." Emma rested her head on the table. "Also, I'm not in the mood for fighting, so please go away."

* * *

"So you learned Aera, too?" Akane implored as he and Hisoka wandered through town.

"Indeed," Hisoka confirmed. "Now we can be considered the flying dragons of Fairy Tail."

"The flying dragons… that has an interesting ring to it."

"I know, right? Now we can… what's with him?"

Akane looked toward the park where Hisoka had just turned his head. The place was empty, save for Merlin, who was repeatedly punching the tree at the center with his bare fists.

"I have a bad feeling about this," Hisoka worried. "Come on."

They ran over to Merlin. Hisoka could see that he wasn't using any magic at all, and his knuckles were bleeding heavily. Akane grabbed Merlin by the back of his shirt and pulled him back, causing him to fall over and land on his butt. He turned to face Akane and Hisoka.

"What the hell are you doing?" Hisoka demanded, kneeling down and indicating Merlin's injured hands. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Merlin lied. Hisoka could hear depression, frustration, fury and deception coming from his head.

"That's not true," Hisoka snapped. He held up his hands. Water condensed around them, and he then lowered them toward Merlin's blood-covered hands. Merlin responded by flinching away.

"Let me help."

"I don't need your help!" Merlin snarled. "If I can't learn to do things on my own, I'm a failure."

"That's also not true." Hisoka grabbed Merlin's wrists, and the water swirled around both of their hands. "I don't know what your problem is, but you can't just beat yourself up over it." The blood on Merlin's hands cleared away, and the wounds on his knuckles closed up.

"It's about Will, isn't it?" Akane inquired, kneeling down to face Merlin.

Tears ran down Merlin's cheeks and dripped on Hisoka's sleeves. "I… I can't do anything without her!" he croaked. "We've always worked together, and now _she_ can't!"

"So what?" Akane demanded. "She'll be able to walk again in a month, and soon after that she'll be able to go on jobs again."

"But she won't fully recover," Merlin sobbed, "and it's my fault!"

"From what I heard," argued Akane, "she's been stressing for the past four days that it wasn't either of our faults."

Merlin looked up at Akane. "You've been visiting her, too?"

Akane nodded. "Now please stop this."

"You think this is hard, but you have no idea," Hisoka lectured. "Just last week, I learned that my adopted mother had died, and that the community I grew up in has gone up in flames. Even if William isn't going to fully recover, she will get better. Even though you aren't powerful enough to go on jobs on your own, you will get stronger. As for me, Flumentia isn't coming back, and my home continent will never be the same again. Just don't do this. For your sister's sake, if not for your own. If you want things to be any better, you need to stand up and move forward. That's what both of your sisters are doing. And it's what you can do too."

Merlin looked down for a brief moment, then responded. "Yeah." He wiped his face with one arm. "This isn't like me. If I can stand up against a dragon, I can stand up against this. I'm a Fairy Tail wizard, and I won't give up!"

Hisoka smiled and stood up, followed by Akane. He then extended a hand, which Merlin grabbed and pulled himself up.

"Let's go back to the guild," suggested Hisoka.

Merlin nodded, and gave a bit of a smile.

They headed off towards the guild hall.

When they walked through the doors, they saw that it was surprisingly empty.

"I guess a lot of people have gone off on jobs," Akane commented.

"Right." Hisoka scanned the room. He spotted Nashi eating at a table with Henri and Thomas. He also could see Emma resting her head on a different table, her jet-black, unkempt hair covering her face. "Over here." He led Merlin and Akane over to where Nashi, Henri and Thomas were. "Hey, Emma!" he called. "Can you come over here for a minute?"

Emma looked up and saw that Merlin appeared to be in a better mood. "What is it?" she asked.

"Just come over here," Hisoka urged. "I want to talk to all six of you about something."

Emma walked over and sat down next to her brother.

"What do you want to talk to us about?" asked Nashi.

"Well, you see," Hisoka began, "this is a thought that's popped into my head a few times over the years. Also, Nashi, this is an answer to your question about forming a team."

"I'm listening," Nashi affirmed.

"I'm curious as to how a guild made entirely out of Dragonslayers would do in the Grand Magic Games."

Everyone perked up at this suggestion.

"Wait…" Nashi broke in. "Does that mean I have to work with _her_?" She jabbed a finger at Emma.

"Likewise," Emma agreed. "Do we seriously have to work together?"

"Well, William's not going to be in any condition for the Games when they come around, and we have no idea when Natsu and Wendy are going to be back, so Gajeel would be the only other possibility."

Nashi and Emma glared at each other.

"Hear me out," pleaded Hisoka. "I think it would be rather interesting to see you two work together, since you're fighting all the time."

Nashi sighed. "You're right. Gajeel's scary."

"Personally, I think this is a good idea," Akane stated.

"I second that," Merlin chimed in. "It's an interesting concept."

"We'll need to do a bunch of stuff," Henri warned. "There'll be paperwork, and the need for an official guild master, as well as a guildmark."

"We can keep our Fairy Tail guildmark as well, right?" asked Akane.

"As long as you have the mark of your current guild, it should be fine," Hisoka reassured him. "In fact, I'm thinking maybe we could design it specifically to fit over the Fairy Tail guildmark."

"I can help you with that." They all turned to see Elkhart sitting at a table next to them. "I'll work on your guildmark."

"Thanks." Hisoka turned back to the other dragonslayers. "Now, we're going to need a name."

"How about 'Dragon King'?" Thomas suggested. "After all, the Grand Magic Games were once known as the Dragon King Festival, not to mention what we're trying to do here with all dragonslayers."

"'Dragon King'…" Nashi pondered those words. "I like it. It has a nice ring to it."

"Agreed," Emma concurred.

"Alright, then," Hisoka affirmed. "Dragon King it is. And Henri, would you like to be guild master?"

Henri shrugged. "Sure."

"And guys," Hisoka added "this is only a temporary guild. We're rejoining Fairy Tail after the Games are over."

"Seems fair."

"That's what I would prefer anyway."

* * *

Porlyusica scanned the five young wizards and two cats standing before her.

"I don't believe William will appreciate having so many visitors at once," she warned.

"It'll be fine," Merlin reassured her. "We wanted to talk to her about something."

Porlyusica sighed. "Make it quick. I don't know how long I can stand the smell of so many humans."

Merlin nodded, and they all headed through the door.

"Hey, Will," Merlin greeted.

"Hey," William greeted back. She looked at all of the people who had come to visit her. "Why are you all here."

"We wanted to tell you something," Emma explained. "You see, we formed a temporary guild, just to see how a guild made entirely out of dragonslayers would do in the Grand Magic Games."

Will's eyes widened in surprise. "Interesting. So you're just rejoining Fairy Tail after that?"

Akane nodded. "And even though it doesn't seem like you'll be in the Games, we were wondering if you'd like to join the guild."

William smiled. "Well, I may not fully recover, but I just might recover enough by then. I could be a reserve member. Sure. I'll join. What's the guild called?"

"Dragon King," Nashi replied.

"'Dragon King'… I like it."

"Alright, then." Hisoka turned to Henri. "Why don't you go check on how Elkhart's doing with the guild symbol?"

Henri nodded and flew out the window.

"This year," Hisoka announced, grinning excitedly, "is the return of the Dragon King Festival!"

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **So, yeah. I do plan to continue this series, but first I'm going to take care of other things in my life, as well as plan out the next arc of this story. You see, these first five chapters weren't that well-written, due to poor planning. I hope to do much better with the upcoming story arc. Hope you enjoyed!**


	6. Anima Arc - Return to Edolas

"What is that you're making?"

Elkhart looked up from his workbench to see his mother standing in the doorway. He sighed. "Didn't I ask you to knock before coming in?" he demanded.

"Sorry," Erza replied, realizing what she had done. "Force of habit from when you were younger, and we lived in the same house."

Elkhart sighed again. "Even then I didn't have enough privacy," he grumbled, getting back to what he was working on.

"Isn't that one of Asuka's guns?" Erza asked.

Elkhart looked at the dismantled pieces of the gun on the table. "She said I could borrow it," he replied. "I'm using it for my new invention."

Erza tilted her head in confusion. "How so?"

"Well, I needed to see how it works, because this new device uses a similar concept."

Erza looked back at the gun. "So if you just borrowed it, which implies that you plan to return it, why did you take it apart?"

"I'm going to put it back together when I'm done, okay? You know I'm good with that kind of stuff."

Erza shrugged. Then her eyes fell upon a sheet of paper that had the Fairy Tail guildmark on it, surrounded by other markings she didn't recognize. The paper was grouped with the schematics for a magic stamp, as well as some other schematics Erza didn't recognize.

"And what's that supposed to be?" she asked, indicating the papers.

"A different project," Elkhart replied. "Some of the dragonslayers decided to form a guild, and I'm designing a guildmark for them."

"Their own guild?" Erza queried.

Elkhart shrugged. "It was Hisoka's idea. He said he wanted to see how well an all-dragonslayer guild would fare in the Grand Magic Games."

Erza raised an eyebrow. "They didn't need to form an entire guild for that. I would have loved the idea. I could have made just them into a team for the Games."

"Again, Hisoka's idea, not mine." Elkhart raised his hand, and a sword materialized in his grip. He set the sword down on the table and got out some tools to carefully pry out the lacrima in the hilt. "I mentioned that to him, and his logic was that 'it's more fun this way'." He plucked the lacrima out of the hilt, and caught it before it could be sent flying off somewhere. He then set the lacrima down and got out a magnifying lens. "What surprises me is how he convinced Emma and Nashi to be on the same team."

"He what?! How?"

"I dunno." Elkhart dismissed his mother's incredulous reaction. "Would you please leave? I'm beginning to get uncomfortable."

Erza nodded and closed the door. She knew her son had a tendency to get uncomfortable around people. In the guild hall, he sat at empty tables or in corners, and he never liked teaming up with people. He mostly spent his time studying, working on his inventions or going on solo quests. More importantly, Emma and Nashi were on a team together? Did Hisoka have some sort of mind control magic? Because that shouldn't have been possible. _No_ , she thought. Even mind control shouldn't have worked, which meant Hisoka had to have somehow convinced them. Well, as guild master, she had more important things to worry about. She left the apartment building and headed off toward the guild.

* * *

"Is something wrong?"

William started at suddenly hearing Porlyusica's voice, and turned her head towards the healer, giving her a confused look.

"You seem like you might want to move around."

"I'm fine."

"You're depressed that you can't spend time with your friends, aren't you?"

Will rolled her eyes. "I can manage."

"Cooped up in this small room for a month? I'm not so sure about that."

"But I don't really have a choice, now do I?"

"I wouldn't be so sure about that." Porlyusica picked up a folded wheelchair that had been leaning in the corner.

William's eyes widened in realization. "I'd forgotten about that. Didn't Master Makarov use that before he died?"

Porlyusica nodded and placed the wheelchair next to the bed.

William sat up, turned, and scooted herself backwards. She grabbed the arms of the wheelchair, grunting in pain as she situated herself. Then she pushed off from the bed…

…and immediately doubled over as her stomach began to experience extreme discomfort.

"Is something the matter?" asked Porlyusica.

"S-Sick…" William struggled to retain her senses.

Porlyusica sighed in annoyance. "How did I not see that coming?"

William responded by groaning weakly.

* * *

Hisoka grunted as he hit the sand. He then sat up, assessing the burn marks at various points on his body. He looked up as Nashi strode over to him.

"Weren't you more powerful than this?" Nashi inquired. "You were doing much better than I was when we fought Soren."

"For one thing," Hisoka pointed out, "Soren is immune to fire. Also, I knew him for the first half of my life, so I'm familiar with his tendencies."

"True." Nashi plopped down in the sand next to him. "But keep in mind that there's an ocean right next to us. Plus, your magic is more powerful than your fighting ability suggests. Your technique just needs work."

"To be fair," Hisoka defended, "I never had the need to use my magic for fighting up until that recent encounter. Before that it was hunting, fishing and performing."

"I understand," Nashi acknowledged. "However, you're going to be in the Grand Magic Games, which means you will be doing a lot of fighting. Plus, you're a dragonslayer. Your magic was designed for combat. You can do this. I believe in you."

Hisoka smiled at the encouraging words. "Yeah. But fighting someone who keeps one-shotting me isn't going to help me get any better."

"True, I guess." Nashi stood up and patted her clothes, getting rid of the sand. Then she offered her hand to Hisoka. "Come on. I'll teach you some of the stuff my dad taught me."

Hisoka nodded and took Nashi's hand, allowing her to pull him up. "Yeah." _And not just for the Games_ , he reminded himself, thinking back to what Soren had said, and the decision he had made regarding the subject. He looked up. Clouds were gathering overhead. "I think the storm should help."

* * *

"Seriously?"

Emma didn't respond. She simply continued to sit cross-legged on the rock as the water crashed down continuously.

"How is that supposed to make me more powerful?" Demanded Merlin.

"You improve your ability to concentrate while getting both pounded by a waterfall and repeatedly struck by lightning." As if on cue, a bright white bolt came down on the top of the waterfall with a thunderous crash, causing Merlin to yelp in surprise, cringing and doing his best to cover his eyes and ears. Emma flinched a bit, but maintained her pose.

"I-It looks really dangerous…" fretted Merlin.

"You said you want to become more powerful," Emma asserted. "This is how we're doing it. Dad does this, he taught me to do it, and now you can do it, too."

Merlin hesitated, then reached down and placed a hand in the water. Then he rapidly pulled away. "It's freezing!" he complained.

"Good. It's more effective that way." Another bolt of lightning came down and engulfed Emma. Merlin cringed, while Emma, again, didn't do much more than flinch. "In order to become more powerful, you have to exercise both your body and your mind."

Merlin hesitated, then began to walk towards the waterfall. Suddenly, a familiar scent hit his nose. He froze in his tracks. "It can't be…"

Emma finally opened her eyes and saw Merlin's fearful expression. "What is it?"

Merlin looked up at the clouds. They all followed the same path, forming bands that made their motion easier to see. And they all followed a curved path.

Emma stepped out of the waterfall, and repeated herself. "What is it?"

Merlin pointed a finger towards the sky and drew a couple of imaginary lines, locating the center of what he now realized was a spiral. "The others are in danger."

* * *

"Karyuu no Houkou!" A cone of flame shot through the air, vaporizing nearby falling raindrops and destroying a tree with both explosive force and intense heat. Nashi took one last glance at her handiwork, then turned to face Hisoka. "Now you try your breath attack."

Hisoka looked at the spot where the tree had been. Then he located another tree, and breathed in. "Kawatatsu no Houkou!" A torrent of water surged from his mouth and smacked into the tree, causing it to bend. He breathed heavily, mildly disappointed that the tree was undamaged, other than a bunch of missing leaves.

Nashi frowned. "You're not breathing properly," she criticized. "You did much better when you blasted Soren into those mountains."

"That was kind of rage-fueled," Hisoka protested, suppressing his frustration. "So what _am_ I supposed to do?"

"First of all, catch your breath," Nashi advised. "Slayer magic is a lot more controlled by physical movement than most other magics. Again, you are not using magic power very efficiently. Your ribcage suggests large lungs, so your breath attack should be much more powerful than mine. Not to mention water is better at sheer force than fire. Now, take a deep breath."

Hisoka took a deep breath.

"And breathe out."

Hisoka exhaled.

"Now breathe in again, really deep, and use it for your breath attack."

Hisoka inhaled again, letting his lungs fill up to their limit. "Kawatatsu no…" he drew magic from his entire body, focusing it into his lungs. "…Houkou!" He released the breath, along with a huge torrent of water. The tree was blasted out of the ground and shredded to pieces in midair.

Nashi's eyes widened in surprise. "Good job."

Hisoka sank to his knees. "I just used all of my magic on that," he huffed, planting his hands in the ground to support himself.

"Ah," Nashi realized. "Aaaand that's another thing you'll want to avoid: using up all your magic in one go. There's no way you'll one-shot most of the wizards in the Games."

Hisoka looked up at Nashi and grinned humorously. "I guess I'll need to work on that," he mused.

"Interesting," Nashi commented. "You're reacting cheerfully to messing something up."

Hisoka splayed himself out on the sand, back-first, and looked up at Nashi. "It's better than the alternative."

Nashi pondered this for a moment. "That sort of makes sense…"

Suddenly, they both turned their heads to the sound of footsteps racing towards them. They could see Merlin in the lead, with Emma trailing behind him.

As the siblings ran towards them, Hisoka stood up, leaning on Nashi for a moment as his vision tunneled. Then the effects cleared up, and he stood up straight to greet them. "How's it going?" he asked.

Merlin stopped next to them. "We have to get out of this area!" he warned. "Where're Akane and the exceeds?"

"Akane and Thomas are training on a remote rock out in the ocean," Hisoka replied. "And Henri's in my apartment, doing paperwork."

"Good. They're safe where they are. But _we_ have to get out of here! Look at the clouds."

Hisoka looked up. The clouds were forming a huge spiral centered almost directly above them. He realized Merlin must have mistaken it for a tornado or something. "Don't worry," he sighed. "It's not what you think it is. I'm a water mage. I know what weather looks like."

"Do you now?" inquired Merlin. "Then tell me what that is."

Hisoka opened his mouth to speak, then realized he had nothing to say.

"Yeah." Merlin realized he had been up in Hisoka's face, and he backed off. "Will and I, on the other hand, have seen this about eight different times."

"What is it, then?" Hisoka asked.

Merlin took another glance at the clouds out of paranoia, then looked at both Nashi and Hisoka. "Anima."

Nashi's eyes widened in shock. "Seriously?" Hisoka could hear surprise and concern coming from her mind.

"Wait a minute," Hisoka interrupted. "How can that be? The machine is in Edolas, isn't it? And it was used to remove all magic from that world, so there's no magic there to power it back up."

Nashi sighed. "You haven't kept up on recent news, have you? There have been Anima storms popping up all over the world lately, and they apparently occur naturally."

Merlin nodded. "S-class wizards from various guilds have been investigating the phenomenon. From Fairy Tail, that includes myself, William, Elkhart, Freed, Laxus and Mirajane."

"Don't you have more S-class mages than that?" asked Hisoka.

"Gildarts and Team Natsu have been on another job for the past five years," Nashi replied.

Merlin nodded. "As for the other S-class mages in our guild, these investigations are officially ten-year quests. Now we have to get out of here!"

Hisoka looked up in response to a white flash. A hole had opened up at the center of the cloud spiral, and some sort of flashing light was coming from it. "Oi…"

Merlin looked up, seeing what Hisoka could see. "Never mind," he corrected himself. "With a storm of this size, we'll never escape it."

"I might be able to fly one of us to safety," Hisoka suggested.

"Fly with what?" Merlin asked, surprised to hear that Hisoka possessed flying magic.

"Aera."

Merlin shook his head. "Even unloaded, you wouldn't be able to escape."

Hisoka looked back up at the flashes, which had now become a steady glow, with lightning arcing from it. Debris began to float up off of the ground, and the air filled with sand. Everyone shielded their eyes. In the distance, Hisoka could see various rides at the nearby beach resort turning white, stretching up towards the hole, and disappearing. A pillar of white light shot up to meet the white glow in the hole.

"What about the people?!" Hisoka shouted. He immediately regretted opening his mouth as it filled with sand. He squinted as the trees, stands, and even the ocean water floated up and were sucked into the hole. Finally, most of the sand was gone, and he could stop squinting. He spat out sand, struggling to get all of it out of his mouth. Suddenly he realized something. He held up his hands and looked at them. Then he looked at everyone else.

"Why aren't we disappearing?" Nashi asked, seeming to read Hisoka's mind.

"I don't know…" Merlin looked around them. Almost everything in the area was gone.

Suddenly, Emma remembered the story her father had told her. "It's because we're dragonslayers."

Everyone looked at her, surprised that she knew this.

"Oh, don't look so surprised, Merlin. Don't you remember the story of how dad met Uncle Lily?"

"Uncle?" Hisoka inquired.

"Don't ask," advised Nashi. "They call him that, and nobody knows why."

"Anima can't affect dragonslayers," Emma explained. "Not unless it specifically targets them."

Nashi leaned toward Emma with an angry look on her face. "Then why didn't you warn us earlier?"

Emma reciprocated the hostile gesture, pressing her forehead against Nashi's and grinning. "I'm sorry. Were you scared, Flame-Brain?"

"You wish, Metalhead!"

"Is this really any time for fighting?!" demanded Merlin. Nashi and Emma, however, didn't hear him, as they were too busy yelling at each other and exchanging blows. The two hopped up onto some large rocks, staring each other down.

"Oi…" Hisoka began, realizing too late what was about to happen.

The rocks upon which Nashi and Emma were standing began to lift up, as the anima tried to suck them in. The two dragonslayers simultaneously got sickened expressions on their faces, and fell over, holding onto the rocks for dear life as they started to ascend.

"Nei-chan!" Merlin whipped around to face Hisoka. "You can fly, right?!"

"I-I'm sorry," apologized Hisoka. "I used up all of my magic while training."

Merlin seethed in frustration. "Great! One of my sisters gets permanently crippled and the other gets sucked into Edolas. Just my luck, isn't it?!" He watched helplessly as the two rocks carrying Nashi and Emma were sucked into the light.

Suddenly, there was a flash of light, and a powerful wind knocked Hisoka and Merlin into the air. Hisoka was temporarily blinded, and he braced himself as he tumbled to the ground.

When his senses cleared, Hisoka could see that the ground had become white and powdery. There were white clouds everywhere, and they appeared to be more solid than normal clouds, like cotton. The light in the sky had died down, but the hole was still there, and there were small bubbles floating upward. All around him he could see the same white, powdery landscape with the cotton-like clouds. He saw a person lying on the ground, and recognized the unkempt blue locks. He ran over to him.

"Oi, Merlin! Wake up!" Hisoka grabbed him and started shaking him. Merlin stirred and his eyes opened.

"H-How long…?"

"Just a few seconds," Hisoka replied. He sat down next to Merlin, who began to sit up. "I'm really sorry…"

"Don't." Merlin cut him off. "It's not your fault. I'm just frustrated, that's all."

"Oi!" another voice called. Hisoka and Merlin turned toward where the shoreline was now filling back up, and saw Akane and Thomas flying towards them. They landed next to them. "We saw a weird light and this sort of cloud spiral, and we were wondering what it… whoa!" He suddenly noticed the new landscape.

"Aaaand he notices," Merlin sarcastically remarked.

"Oi!" an additional voice called from the opposite direction. They all turned to see Henri speeding towards them. She dove down and hovered near Hisoka. "I saw a weird light and this sort of cloud spiral, and I was wondering what it… whoa!"

"Aaaand take two," Merlin added.

"What happened here?" asked Thomas.

"Anima," Hisoka replied.

"Anima?" Akane queried.

Merlin nodded. "There have been a few naturally occurring Anima at random places in the world, and the Magic Council has been requesting investigations of them in the form of 10-year quests."

"What's Anima?" Akane asked.

"It's this hyperspace magic that connects the worlds Earthland and Edolas," Hisoka explained. "The world we live in is Earthland, and Nashi and Emma just got sucked into Edolas." He looked around him. "…as well as an entire beach," he added.

"Well, we have to go rescue them, don't we?" insisted Akane. "Those are our friends!"

"You're right," Merlin agreed. "Those two wouldn't last two minutes out there; they're too busy fighting to notice possible dangers."

"Well, let's go!" Akane declared. "What are we waiting for? Four out of five of us can fly, so it shouldn't be a problem!"

Hisoka turned to Merlin. "You've been investigating these, right? How long until the gateway closes?"

Merlin looked up. "With one of this size?" He stood up and examined the clouds and the hole. "I'd say about four to five hours. Why?"

"I don't have magic right this second, but that should be long enough for me to charge back up. Then we go after them."

"I'll go on up," Henri decided.

"You're not going alone," asserted Hisoka.

" _You're_ not telling _me_ what to do," Henri retorted.

"I'll go up with you," sighed Thomas.

Henri rolled her eyes. "Fine."

"I'll wait here with Hisoka," Akane offered as the two exceeds flew up towards the hole.

Merlin nodded. "You two fly up together. I'll go seek additional help."

As Merlin dashed off, Hisoka stood up and looked up at the sky. "Remember those role-playing adventure games we'd play as kids?"

Akane nodded. "I never expected we'd actually go on adventures."

Hisoka chuckled. "It seems to be a package deal with Fairy Tail."

They both laughed.

Hisoka looked out at the now-refilled ocean. "Too bad that's salt water."

"What's wrong with salt water?" inquired Akane.

"It makes me sick when I eat it," explained Hisoka. "It replenishes my magic, just like any other water, but it also makes me sick in the stomach."

"I see." Akane took a casual glance upward. "Wait… what about the clouds?"

"Well, I could draw moisture from them if I could get to them."

"I could carry you up," offered Akane.

"Ah!" Hisoka exclaimed, realizing how obvious of a solution that was. "Well, what are we waiting for?!"

"Sheesh!" Akane grabbed Hisoka around the waist, then sprouted his red dragon-like wings and shot up towards the clouds, taking Hisoka with him. As they neared the clouds, Hisoka began to inhale, drawing in multiple trails of water vapor. Then, as he regained enough magic, he sprouted his own river dragon wings, and Akane let go of him as he sucked in more power.

"Alright!" Hisoka declared. "Let's go rescue our friends!"

The two flew up into the hole.

* * *

Elkhart held up his creation and grinned. "Alright. Let's test you out." He wrapped his hand around the grip, stepped away from his workbench, and concentrated fire magic into his hand. Instantly, a rod of flame extended from one end of the handle, forming the shape of a blade. He stopped pumping out magic, and the flame died down. "Alright. Let's try…" he thought for a second. "…lightning magic." He began to focus a different magic into his hand, and a similar blade, this time of lightning, extended from the handle, causing Elkhart's hair to stand up. He then stopped pumping out magic, and the blade died down. He smiled.

"I declare you a success," he stated to the now inactive hilt. "You belong in my requip inventory." The hilt dematerialized. Then he took a casual glance out of his window. "Huh?"

Elkhart left his apartment, descended the stairs, and left the apartment building, then caught up to the man who had just walked past his apartment. "Oi! Dad!" he greeted. "It's been a while."

The man turned around. He had short, blue hair, and a red line tattoo surrounding his right eye, in a similar manner to that of Elkhart's Fairy Tail guildmark. He wore thick clothing, as well as multiple staves bound to his back.

"'Dad'?" he implored.

"Yeah." Elkhart was confused as to why Jellal didn't recognize him. It had only been about a year since they last met. "It's your son, Elkhart. Don't you remember me?"

Jellal continued to look confused for a few seconds. Then a look of sudden realization crossed his face. "Ah! You must think I'm the Jellal of this world."

"Uh…"

"I'm not your father," Jellal explained. "I just happen to look like him. Now, it's been twenty-eight years since I was last in this world, so I can't quite remember where things are. Can you direct me to your guild?"

Elkhart suddenly realized what was going on. "You're…"

* * *

Merlin stepped into the guild hall.

"Merlin!" Levy got up from the table where she had been eating her breakfast, and walked over to meet her son. "Your sister's in the guild hospital wing. Are you going to go visit her?"

"That can wait." Merlin strode past his mother and continued over to the bar. "Where's the Master?" he asked Mira.

As if on que, Erza stepped out of her office.

"Master!" Merlin called as Erza headed toward the doors.

"You'll have to wait," Erza waved him off. "I have to go to a meeting."

"This is more important," Merlin insisted. "Nashi and Emma have been sucked into Edolas!"

Erza stopped in her tracks and turned to face him, a surprised look on her face. "What?"

"Like I said," Merlin confirmed. "There was a giant Anima storm at the beach three days ago. Some rocks hit Emma and Nashi on the way up and carried them along."

Erza's expression changed to concern as she walked over and sat at the bar.

"Henri, Thomas, Hisoka and Akane flew in to rescue them, while I came back here to seek extra help."

Just then, two figures walked in through the guild doors. One of them was Elkhart. The other, Merlin recognized as Jellal, which confused him, as he could have sworn Crime Sorciere wasn't planning to be back until the Grand Magic Games.

"Jellal…?" Erza began, apparently just as surprised as Merlin.

"Yes and no," Elkhart replied as he stepped in front of Jellal. "To be exact, King Jellal of Edolas. Or, as he is known in Earthland…"

Erza's eyes widened. "Mystogan."

* * *

 **So, yeah. I've sent them off on a bit of an adventure in Edolas. Also, sorry for the huge delay. This time I wrote the entire arc and then started releasing chapters. Also, in order to leave a smaller gap between arcs I think I will release a chapter every other week instead of every week (specifically monday, but it might change to a weekend), and I will start work on the next arc as I'm releasing chapters in this one. Hope you enjoyed!**


	7. Anima Arc - Hisoka Dreyar

"Is everything alright?"

Lucy looked up at Mirajane from where she had been resting her head on the bar. "Sure. Why wouldn't it be?"

"Well, you were in an unusually good mood when you went to visit the king, and then you came back like this."

Lucy sighed. "Well, Jellal apparently had to flee the Royal City, and he wouldn't tell me where he was going."

"I'm sure he'll be fine," Mirajane reassured her. "You know that man better than anyone."

Lucy gave a weak smile. "Yeah. I guess so."

Suddenly, there was a loud crash behind Lucy, causing her to jump. She turned to see two young women lying on the floor. Additionally, there was now a large hole in the guild roof. The two girls got up. Lucy was surprised to see that one of them was identical to Emma, who was sitting at a nearby table with Cana. Her eyes widened shock and disbelief as she laid her eyes on the other one. "You're…"

Nashi ignored her as she glared at Emma. "Now look what you've done," she snarled. "You distracted me, and now we've been sucked into Edolas!"

"Oh?" Emma returned the gesture. "You're going to blame me, when you were so oblivious that you didn't notice those rocks?"

Suddenly, both were grabbed by the collars of their shirts and pulled to the side. "Would you stop that?!" the person grabbing them demanded. "You've already damaged my guild enough. Also…" she shoved Emma aside and pulled Nashi closer. "What are _you_ doing here?"

Nashi's eyes widened in shock as she saw Lucy's face. "Mom…?"

"Huh?" Lucy looked at the Emma that she had grabbed and then shoved aside, then over at the Emma who was drinking tea with Cana, then back at Nashi. Suddenly she realized her mistake, and let go of Nashi. "S-Sorry," she apologized. "I thought you were someone else."

Nashi continued to stare at Lucy for a moment, then realized _her_ mistake. "Same here, actually," she mused.

"I know. You called me 'Mom'."

Nashi gave a little chuckle of embarrassment. "So this is Edolas' Fairy Tail, huh?"

Lucy nodded. "How did you two get here, anyway?"

"We got caught up in an Anima storm," Emma explained. "And we landed here." She looked around the guild, then spotted the other Emma. The two froze in their tracks and just stared at each other. Then Earth-Emma strode over to the table and leaned in towards Edo-Emma with a curious expression on her face. "You're… me?"

"I'd ask the same of you," reciprocated Edo-Emma. "Do I seriously dress like that in Earthland?"

Earth-Emma looked down at her attire. "What's wrong with this?"

"It's a bit skimpier than I would go with," Edo-Emma replied. "It's weird seeing myself dress like that."

Earth-Emma glared at her counterpart. "Well, I'm _sorry_ for showing my legs." She turned towards the door. "I've had enough of this. I'm going to go explore the city."

"Hold on!" Edo-Emma stood up and speed-walked over. "You'll want a guide for that, and besides, there are a few more things I want to ask you."

Earth-Emma ground her teeth in annoyance. "Fine! But don't pester me too much." The two of them walked out through the guild doors.

Nashi watched them leave, then turned back to Lucy. "So what am I like here?"

Lucy paused for a second, wondering what to say, then lowered her head. Nashi could see anger in her eyes.

* * *

"By, the way, Akane…"

Akane removed his arm from over his eyes, trying not to get blinded by the vortex of light around them, and looked over to Hisoka. "What is it?" he asked.

"I suppose I should have mentioned this earlier, since you probably don't know a whole lot where you've been living," Hisoka continued. "But we can't use magic in Edolas."

Akane's eyes widened in surprise, which he immediately regretted and put his arm back over them. "Then how do we survive?! How do we get back?"

"We survive because nobody else can use magic either. As for how to get back… I don't know, but these are our friends; we have to rescue them!"

Akane looked back behind them. It was still the same vortex of light. Even if he stopped flying, some invisible force continued to propel him forward. "Well, it's too late to change my mind now. I really hope we can find them."

"We have to."

They continued flying through the vortex, when suddenly, there were a few flashes of light, and the vortex disappeared, showing a pair of gigantic farms down below, surrounded by a desert that went on for tens of kilometres in any direction. Akane hovered in the air, in awe of the scene.

"Hurry up and land before your magic fades!" Hisoka shouted from below.

Akane snapped out of his amazed state and dove down, slowing and landing safely in the crops next to Hisoka just as his wings disappeared. He tried making them form again, but couldn't, even though he didn't feel drained of magic. He looked up at the sky. "Amazing!"

Hisoka looked up, and was just as much in awe as Akane. Multiple large bodies were scattered across the sky, one of them partially covering the sun, which flared out from behind it. "That is the most incredible… gah!" He was interrupted by a sharp pain shooting through his head. He started to clutch it in agony.

Akane looked over at Hisoka. "Oi, are you…? gah!" He suddenly began to experience the same agonizing headache.

Hisoka then felt something rough against his skin. He looked at the texture and colors that were forming on his arms. "Dragon… scales…?"

"Me, too…" Akane looked at the new red, scaly texture on his arms. "What's going on?!"

"I…" Hisoka was interrupted by another, more intense shot of pain through the head, and his world faded to black.

* * *

"Aaaand we're lost."

Henri ignored Thomas's comment and continued to look around.

"Any ideas?" asked Thomas.

"Well, I don't think we're going to find a familiar landmark."

"Obviously," Thomas snorted in annoyance. "Even if we weren't in the middle of a desert, we're still in an unfamiliar world."

Henri sighed, then sprouted her wings and flew up to get a better view.

"I thought you couldn't use magic in Edolas," Thomas noted.

"Humans can't," replied Henri. "We're exceeds, which are the exception."

Thomas was surprised to hear this. He tried sprouting wings, and sure enough, they appeared on his back. He flew up to join Henri. "Intriguing," he commented. "I wonder how much more I have to learn."

"On another note," Henri interrupted his thoughts, "I believe we've found a familiar landmark."

Thomas raised an eyebrow. "You're joking, right? This is a completely different world."

Henri pointed.

Thomas looked where she was pointing. His eyes widened in surprise. "Is that…?"

"The beach resort that got sucked into the Anima? Yes, it is." Henri started off towards it. "Come on."

Thomas followed suit.

* * *

"So, you're in no way into guys?"

Earth-Emma shook her head. "What's more confusing," she stated to her Edolas counterpart, "is what you see in them."

"It's all confusing," Edo-Emma argued. "I'm straight and you're gay, even though we're supposed to be effectively the same person."

"Well, we're not really the same person," Earth-Emma pointed out. "We have the same face, but from what I hear, that tends to be the only similarity, doesn't it? I mean, our personalities are super-different."

"Right. However, personality is heavily influenced by the environment, whereas orientation is built-in."

"For the most part, yeah," Earth-Emma admitted. "However, Earthland and Edolas counterparts can be different species and still have the same face." She grimaced briefly at the thought of Ichiya and Nichiya. "Orientation can't be that much harder, right?"

"I suppose so. But I just can't wrap my head around the idea of me being gay."

"And I can't wrap my head around the idea of me being straight. You're right. It is confusing."

Edo-Emma smiled. "Confusing or not, I find you interesting."

"Likewise," Earth-Emma agreed. "Me, and yet, not me. Same appearance, quite a few of the same interests, and then a lot of different interests. Also, the food here."

"What about the food?"

"It all tastes so… different," Earth-Emma explained. "It's all made from stuff that isn't found in Earthland, and there's significant diversity. And the silverware."

"…which, by the way, you're not supposed to be eating," Edo-Emma remarked as Earth-Emma munched on a fork.

"It's iron," Earth-Emma pointed out. "I'm an iron dragonslayer."

"You still don't eat silverware."

"Whatever." Earth-Emma ignored her counterpart and continued to munch on the fork.

Edo-Emma sighed.

* * *

"Excuse me."

The man at the fish stand looked up at Henri.

"Have you seen two girls?"

"You'll want to be a bit more specific than that."

Henri sighed. "One of them is about that tall…" She hovered a certain height above the ground with her paw. "…with long, unkempt, jet-black hair. She has quite a few piercings. The other is a bit shorter, with similar, but shorter, cherry-blossom-colored hair. They can often be seen fighting."

The man shook his head. "Never seen 'em."

"Okay. Thanks." Henri flew over to the rendezvous point, and was soon joined by Thomas.

"Any luck?" asked Thomas.

Henri shook her head. "I don't think they're here."

"Well, they weren't sucked in directly by the Anima," Thomas pointed out.

"True." Henri casually glanced up at the sky as one of the moons eclipsed the sun. "They were carried in by stray debris, so maybe they were flung off somewhere else."

"So what do we do?"

"Well, we have no idea where we are, or where _they_ are," Henri pointed out. "So I'm not really sure we can do anything."

Henri flew up above the resort. Thomas came up after her.

"We should at least find some people who live in this world," Henri suggested. "They could give us directions."

"It'll take us a while," Thomas pointed out, "considering that this beach resort was the only thing we saw at first."

"I know. But it's our only chance."

* * *

"Oi! Hisoka! Wake up!"

Hisoka groaned a bit, and his eyes opened to see Akane staring down at him.

"Wha…?" His stomach heaved, and he doubled over the edge of the bed, vomiting on the floor. He laid back down on the pillow, his head spinning. "What happened?"

"Someone found us," Akane explained, "and took us into their house. According to them, we've both been out for two days."

Suddenly, Hisoka remembered. They had landed in Edolas, and they had suddenly both experienced extreme pain and blacked out. He held up his arm. It looked perfectly normal.

"She said she didn't see any scales on us," Akane explained. "They must have faded shortly after we collapsed."

"'She'?"

"The person who rescued us," replied Akane. "She introduced herself as 'River'."

The door across from them opened.

"Speaking of the devil…" Akane turned to face the woman who walked in. She looked to be in her early thirties, and she had medium-length, ocean blue hair. Hisoka sat up as the woman approached him with a glass of water.

"You've been out a while," River commented. "You're probably dehydrated."

"And considering who I am," Hisoka added, "that is not a good thing."

River gave him a confused look.

"I'm a river dragonslayer," Hisoka explained. "Therefore, I consume a lot of water."

"Ah."

"How did you know I would be conscious?" Hisoka asked.

"Huh?"

"You just walked in with a glass of water for me."

"Well, Akane noticed that you were stirring," River explained.

"Ah." Hisoka took the glass and gulped down the contents within two seconds. Then he handed the glass back. "What's with the smell?" he asked.

"What smell?" asked Akane. "She smells normal to me, though maybe a bit more dragon-like than most humans."

"That smell," Hisoka responded to the last bit of Akane's sentence, then turned his head back to River. "As well as your voice. Both are exactly like the dragon that raised me, Flumentia."

A look of realization crossed Akane's face. "So that's what it was."

"But also," Hisoka added, "your face is incredibly familiar."

River smiled. Hisoka could hear a bit of sadness, as well as relief, which confused him, as those two emotions normally didn't mix. There was even a hint of joy.

River looked at Akane. "You said his name was Hisoka, yes?"

Akane nodded.

River looked back at Hisoka. "And that is your name?"

"Yeah. Why?"

Suddenly, River knelt down and embraced Hisoka, taking him completely by surprise.

"Huh?" Hisoka could smell tears forming.

"Fourteen years," River stressed. "You've been missing for fourteen years." She let go of Hisoka and stood up.

"Who are you?" Hisoka demanded.

River smiled. "I'm not surprised you don't remember. You were three years old at the time."

Hisoka waited.

"I'm your mother, River Dreyar."

* * *

"Mystogan." Erza stood up and walked over to the king of Edolas. "What are you doing here? More importantly, how did you get here?"

"I'm going to assume that Earthland has been experiencing several randomly occurring Anima throughout the years?"

Erza thought about this, and nodded.

"Well, they've had effects on Edolas as well," Mystogan explained. "It's been causing a bit of civil unrest."

"And you're here for what reason?" asked Erza.

"Well, I managed to hitch a ride on one of the Anima," Mystogan continued, "which I did because I'm afraid that I'm going to need your help."

"I'm listening."

Suddenly, Merlin remembered something, and made a beeline for the guild hospital. He opened the door and stepped inside, then closed the door behind him and followed the familiar smell to a specific bed.

"Nice of you to drop in."

"Will…" Merlin sat down on the bed and embraced his sister. "Long time no see."

William sighed in exasperation. "It's only been a week."

Merlin let go of William and sat up. "Well, I still missed you."

"Yeah, same here." William pulled herself up against the back of the bed. "We don't frequently spend that much time apart."

"Yeah." Merlin chuckled to himself. "Except maybe that time I had a cold."

William laughed at the memory. "And I decided to go on an S-class quest by myself."

"And I sensed you were in danger, and dashed out to help."

"That had to be some sort of record for long-distance sprinting."

"Yeah," Merlin agreed. "How long was I out after that?"

"About two weeks."

Merlin sighed. "And I imagine you would have done the same for me."

They both laughed. Then William broke off with a few painful coughs, and made herself stop.

"I suppose I shouldn't make you laugh for now?" Merlin suggested

"That would be a good idea." William pondered for a moment. "Where's Emma?" she suddenly asked.

Merlin sat there, shocked, as he tried to figure out what to say. Then he stopped panicking and answered. "Uh, she's in Edolas."

"What?!"

"Like I said," confirmed Merlin. "To be more specific, Emma and Nashi both got caught up in another Anima."

William looked down at her sheets, uncertain of how to respond.

"But they're not alone," Merlin reassured her. "Henri and Thomas flew in to rescue them, as well as Akane and Hisoka."

"And how do they expect to get back?"

Merlin opened his mouth to speak, then realized he didn't have an answer.

"So let me get this straight… they just dashed in without thinking about any possible consequences?"

"Well," Merlin protested, "exceeds can still use magic in Edolas, so they could fly them…"

"…through interstellar space," William finished for him.

"No," Merlin pleaded, quickly realizing the problem his sister had just presented. "They can… wait for another Anima…"

"You don't have a plan," William cut him off. "They flew into Edolas to retrieve some friends, with no plan whatsoever on how to get back."

"Those two wouldn't survive out there on their own. They'd be too busy fighting to pay attention to their surroundings."

"I suppose that's true…" William conceded.

"Also, the Anima was closing, so we had to think quickly."

William sighed in annoyance. "They'd better all get back okay."

"They will," Merlin reassured her. "I believe in them."

Suddenly, Erza walked into the room. "Merlin," she commanded, "you need to be in the guild hall right now."

"What? Why?"

"You want to save Emma and Nashi, right?" inquired Erza. "Actually, you, too, William. All available guild members are needed out here."

William and Merlin exchanged glances. Then Merlin looked back at Erza. "Alright. Hold on." He pulled off William's bedsheets, then slipped one arm under her knees, and the other arm under the small of her back. William wrapped her arms around his neck, and he stood up and carried her out into the guild hall.

"Now that we have everyone," Erza began as Merlin set William down on a bench, then sat down next to her in such a way that she could lean comfortably on him, "I would first of all like to introduce an old friend that I'm pretty sure some of you know: Mystogan."

A few murmurs went around the guild hall as the robed man who closely resembled Jellal stepped forward.

"Mystogan?"

"I thought he was in Edolas."

"Isn't travel between Edolas and Earthland impossible?"

Erza cleared her throat, and everyone snapped back to attention. "As others of you may know, there have been various randomly occurring Anima throughout the world, which have been investigated as ten-year quests."

Merlin nodded in acknowledgement, and gritted his teeth at the memory of the quest that had led to his sister getting crippled. William sensed her brother's discomfort, and she raised a hand and ran it through his hair, comforting him slightly.

"Well, they have been happening in Edolas as well," Erza continued, "which has caused a bit of civil unrest. Not only that, but the Anima have lately been happening more often, and on a larger scale, which we do need to figure out how to deal with."

Mystogan nodded. "I'd like the help of some wizards who can use magic in Edolas or are capable of working without magic, as it seems that we will need to try to sort out both the civil unrest and the Anima."

Gajeel raised a hand. "I guess that includes me. Also, I'm curious to see how my counterpart's doing."

Erza nodded. "We both consumed exballs a while back. I'll go as well."

"That's another thing," Mystogan added. "I'm not one hundred percent sure that those work anymore. For one thing, it's been twenty-eight years since you consumed them…"

"Twenty-one for us, actually," Erza interrupted. "We were in suspended animation at one point."

"Well, that explains why you haven't aged as much as our Erza," Mystogan replied. "But also, the ones that you didn't consume would have been corrupted when I sent all the magic into Earthland, and it's possible that the same thing happened to the ones inside you. In other words, you two may still be able to use magic. However, there's a good chance that that will not be the case." He looked around the room. "By the way, where are the others?"

"Which others?" asked Erza.

"The others who were in Edolas back then. What happened to them."

"Ah," Erza realized. "They are currently unavailable, and have been for the past five years."

"Five years?!" asked Mystogan incredulously. "What are they doing that takes five years?"

"The five hundred-year quest," Merlin piped in. "They went on the five hundred-year quest with Gildarts."

"The five hundred-year quest?" Mystogan turned his attention back to Erza. "I've never heard of that. There was the _one_ hundred-year quest, but I've never heard of the _five_ hundred-year quest."

"It only recently got requested by the Magic Council," Erza explained. "Some sort of war in the far east. I forget the details. It was assigned to wizards from multiple guilds."

Mystogan sighed.

"Anyway," Erza resumed, "it can't be helped. Gajeel, can you contact Lily and ask him to return to the guild?"

"There's no need for that." Everyone turned in the direction of the deep voice to see a black cat standing in the doorway. "What do you want with me?" Lily asked.

"Lily!" Erza greeted. "How has the search been going?"

Lily grinned. "We found three more this past year. That leaves only two more to go."

"Good to know," Erza affirmed.

"Lily?" Mystogan asked incredulously. "As in the former captain of the first division of the magic militia, Panther Lily?"

Lily's eyes widened. "Y-Your highness…?"

"But… you don't look like him…"

"Oh?" Lily transformed into his larger form, then ran over and embraced Mystogan in a bear hug. "It's good to see you again, young prince!"

"K-King… now…" Mystogan managed. "Also… can't… breathe…" Lily noticed his old friend's discomfort and released him.

"Sorry about that," Lily apologized. "It's just so good to see you again."

"Likewise." Mystogan took a moment to catch his breath. "So you learned transformation magic."

"Not exactly." Lily transformed back to his small form. "I can't sustain my large form in Earthland."

"Ah."

"Anyway," Lily continued, "what was it you wanted with me?"

* * *

"This place seems familiar," Hisoka marveled as he walked into the kitchen, "and I guess I know why." He smiled at his mother.

River nodded and smiled back. "And your father's working in the field when you're ready to meet him," she mentioned. "If you think you're related to people in Earthland, it's through him. He's only lived in Edolas for the last twenty-eight years."

"I see."

"By the way, you mentioned earlier that I was very much like your dragon."

"Indeed I did," confirmed Hisoka. "And you still are."

"I have a theory," Akane suggested, directing what he was saying toward River. "I think you and Flumentia may be parallel counterparts."

"A dragon with an Edolas counterpart that's a human…" Hisoka thought for a moment. "Is that even possible?"

"It is," confirmed Akane. "I heard that our friend Porlyusica is the Edolas version of Wendy Marvell's dragon, Grandine."

"Weird…" Hisoka started talking to himself. "I was separated from my mom at a young age, at which point I was adopted by my mom…" He trailed off as he began to space out.

"Well, your mom's Earthland counterpart, to be exact," Akane corrected him.

Hisoka snapped to attention. "Ah! Where were we?"

Akane sighed and looked at River. "He does that."

"What? What do I do?" Hisoka asked, then realized the answer to his question. "Oh, yeah. Sometimes I drift off into my own world."

The door opened, and a man walked in. He was a bit shorter than Hisoka, and significantly older – perhaps in his late thirties.

"Aaron," River greeted him, "I'd like you to meet our son, Hisoka."

Aaron turned to Hisoka. Hisoka could see that this man had the same ocean-blue eyes as he did. Aaron's eyes widened, and he dove toward Hisoka, embracing him.

"I was worried about you," he whispered into his ear. "We both were. Fourteen years and no trace. Eventually we realized that we wouldn't find you in this world."

Hisoka pushed Aaron off and grasped his father by the shoulders. "Well, you have nothing to worry about now," he reassured him. "I'm home." Then he took a sniff, and remembered something Nashi had mentioned to him. "Is there any reason why you smell so much like Laxus?"

"Laxus?"

Hisoka nodded.

"Laxus…" Aaron repeated. "That's a name I haven't heard in a long time."

"And?"

Aaron refocused on Hisoka. "Well, he's my half-brother."

Hisoka's eyes widened. "Seriously?"

Aaron nodded.

Hisoka continued. "Laxus did mention something about a younger half-brother, but he disappeared…"

"…twenty-eight years ago," Aaron finished for him. "To be exact, I found myself in Edolas."

"And six years later, he met me," River added.

"And five years after that, you were born," Aaron continued, "as well as your friend Akane here."

"Wait… me?" Akane queried.

Aaron nodded. "Our friends from the next farm over also lost a son at the same time, and you mentioned being found by your foster family when you were three years old – same as Hisoka."

"Y-You mean, I…?" Akane stammered in surprise.

Aaron nodded as there was a knock on the door. "I invited them over so that they could confirm this. In fact, that should be them now." He walked over to the door and opened it.

The first person to walk in looked exactly like Anna Heartfilia, the time traveler from the past who had trained five of the seven dragonslayers that eventually took down Acnologia; Hisoka assumed this was her Edolas counterpart.

The other had a darker skin tone than the rest of them, as well as long, shaggy, bluish-silver hair. He was missing a left arm – a fact which he tried to keep hidden with a black, ragged cloak. The dragon markings were gone, but the eyes and the smell were all too familiar. Hisoka's mind filled with rage, and the strength that had been lessened since he had arrived in Edolas began to return.

"Acnologia!"

* * *

 **Yup! Bit of a surprise, right? Don't worry; everything will be explained in the next chapter. As for Hisoka and Akane being sort of from Edolas, what do you think of that? Well, regardless, hope you enjoyed!**


	8. Anima Arc - The Black Dragon's Son

"Acnologia?" Akane asked, a look of concern crossing his face. "As in the black dragon of destruction?"

Acnologia lowered his head in acknowledgement. "I imagine that during your time spent in Earthland, you learned of the dragon that nearly destroyed the world twenty years ago. That was indeed me, and I think you should both know that I sincerely apo–" he was cut off when, in the blink of an eye, Hisoka tore across the kitchen counter and grabbed him by the throat with… claws? Hisoka shoved Acnologia backwards, crashing him into a kitchen cabinet, which shattered and sent dishes flying everywhere, and Akane stared in astonishment as Hisoka's arms began to look more like those of a dragon, with deep blue scales and large, deadly-looking claws. "Wha…?" Acnologia grabbed the arm that had a hand clasped around his throat, desperately trying to remove it.

"Hisoka!" Aaron shouted, his voice filling with panic. "What the hell are you doing?!"

"You… killed… them!" Hisoka ignored the others in the room and spoke directly to Acnologia. "You invaded my continent. You killed me, and countless others!" His voice was significantly different – a lot more like a dragon.

Akane's eyes widened with realization. "Flutlogia?"

Hisoka/Flutlogia turned his head toward Akane. "This dragon," he ranted, "this representation of evil itself, nearly destroyed the world, Akane. I'm afraid I can't just let that go."

"You don't have to," Akane argued. "However, that is Hisoka's body, and you're controlling him, probably without his consent. Plus, Acnologia here sounded like he was about to apologize, so can we at least hear him out?"

"This demon," Flutlogia retorted, "cannot be trusted to live for one second. He is a danger to everyone!"

"He can't use magic here," Akane reassured him. "And something tells me that he's been here a long time without causing anybody harm."

The expression on Hisoka/Flutlogia's face softened, and Flutlogia looked back at the man who was about to pass out. Flutlogia released Acnologia, leaving him gasping for breath, and Hisoka transformed back to normal, then fell onto all fours out of exhaustion.

"Thanks, Akane," Hisoka panted. "I've never been possessed before. That was weird." He looked up at Acnologia. "Sorry."

"It's fine," Acnologia reassured him, rubbing his throat. "I've met a few fourth-generation dragonslayers in my time, and I've seen what it's like for them."

"Odd," commented Akane. "It should happen pretty often – like, a third of the times that you get emotionally compromised. I got possessed by my dragon soul a little over two months ago… when Will got crushed." He gritted his teeth at the memory. "Although, you shouldn't have undergone any transformation – just a personality difference."

"Maybe it's because I was weakened by being in Edolas," Hisoka suggested.

"True," Akane acknowledged. "That does seem to have made our souls unstable."

Hisoka slowly stood up, leaning on the counter for support, and looked back at Acnologia. "Anyway, what is it you were saying?"

"Well, I am indeed the Acnologia you all know," Acnologia confirmed.

Hisoka tilted his head in confusion. "But I thought you died twenty years ago."

"I can see why you would think that," Acnologia chuckled. "From the point of view of the people who were there, I just dissolved. However, I actually just dematerialized, then found myself in Edolas."

"But… there was a body, wasn't there? My friend Nashi has a scarf made of your scales."

"Dragons shed scales," Acnologia pointed out. "Anyway, I know that I caused centuries of despair for countless lives, and tried to eliminate all of the dragons. After I landed in Edolas, however, I had time to think about my actions. I decided to never lead that sort of life again. Thankfully, I have no magic here, which stopped me from doing anything. The bottom line is: I'm living a normal life with Anna here, and I have no intention of changing that."

Anna nodded. "We were able to relate to one another, as I am also a former immortal who caused a lot of despair. I lost my immortality twenty-eight years ago when King Jellal got rid of all the magic."

"How come we never heard about you?" asked Hisoka.

"For the most part, I kept a low profile," Anna explained. "However, I did do a few big things, like design Droma Anim."

"That was you?!" Hisoka exclaimed

"And nineteen years ago, we met." Acnologia turned to Akane. "And two years after that, you were born."

Akane's eyes widened. "Y-You mean I'm…?"

Acnologia nodded. "You may notice that even though you can't use magic, your dragon-like senses still work. And I know the smell of my own son, which you most certainly are."

"I'm… the son… of Acnologia?!" Akane paced around the kitchen, desperately trying to wrap his head around what he had just learned.

"Woah," Hisoka simply put. "That's it – just… wow! That is a lot to take in. I… have a last name now…"

"What about me?!" Akane yelled at Hisoka. "I just learned that my dad is the dragon that nearly destroyed the world! What about the guild? Will I be forgiven? Will they even still take me?!"

Hisoka placed his hands on Akane's shoulders. The soothing effect that he normally had on people he touched probably wasn't really there due to the lack of magic, but he should still be able to convince his friend to calm down. "Okay, first of all, that wasn't you. You may be Acnologia's son, but you are not him. Also, remember Gajeel?"

Akane nodded.

"Do you know the story of how he got into Fairy Tail?"

"No, but what does that have to do with anything."

"If you'll let me tell you the story, you'll know," Hisoka explained. "You see, Gajeel was a member of Fairy Tail's rival, Phantom Lord."

Akane nodded.

"Well, one day, Gajeel launched an attack on the guild hall overnight. Luckily, nobody was there. So, the next night, Levy, Jet and Droy were walking home together, and he nearly killed all of them by nailing them to the tree at the center of Magnolia."

"Levy?"

Hisoka nodded. "So, this brought on the full wrath of Fairy Tail, and they fought Phantom Lord, won, and then Phantom Lord disbanded."

"I see."

"So, after that, Gajeel was homeless and unemployed. Master Makarov never forgave him for what he did, but he still invited him to join the guild. He even got married to Levy."

"How do you know all this?" asked Akane.

"I've read a lot of books about Fairy Tail," Hisoka replied.

"Ah."

"Anyway, my point is, it would take a lot more than who your parents are to convince anyone that you shouldn't be in the guild. Laxus even got expelled once for not understanding that… well, mostly trying to take over the guild and endangering the people of Magnolia in the process, but same thing, really."

"I see." Akane smiled, and the worry that Hisoka sensed coming from his head started to fade. It was still there, but significantly less so.

Hisoka looked up at the remains of the cabinet, then down at the shattered dishes all over the kitchen, and he looked up at his parents. "I suppose you'll want help cleaning this up?"

"What just happened here?" River asked as she and Aaron stared in shock.

Hisoka took a moment to think about how to answer. "I, uh, got possessed by a dragon."

Aaron tilted his head in confusion.

"Akane and I are fourth-generation dragonslayers," Hisoka explained. "That means we learned dragonslayer magic, then had our souls fused with the souls of dragons. And sometimes they can express themselves slightly. Now, due to the fact that I was already weakened by being in Edolas, Flutlogia was able to do a full-on possession, which usually only happens when the human is experiencing powerful emotions, and even then, it's just the personality that carries over."

"And Flutlogia is…?"

"My inner dragon. In other words, the dragon whose soul was fused with mine. I think Akane's is called… actually, I can't remember. Akane, what was the name of your inner dragon again?"

"Belserion," Akane replied.

"Anyway," Hisoka declared, changing the subject, "we should be cleaning up this mess."

"True that," Akane agreed.

* * *

"I'll go, too," Merlin announced.

His parents looked at him with questioning expressions.

"You can't even do very much _with_ magic," Levy argued. "Do you really expect me to let you go somewhere that you can't use magic at all?"

"If you're worried about Emma," Gajeel added, "I should remind you that I'm going. I promise I'll bring her back."

"It's not just Emma," Merlin insisted. "And even if it were, you wouldn't be able to change my mind. It's the entire team. Those are my friends, and I intend to help them."

"Then I'm also going," Levy decided.

"Mom…"

Gajeel placed a reassuring hand on Levy's head. "Don't worry about it, Lev'. I'll be there. What about William? Who'll take care of her?"

Levy looked through the window of their apartment out at the distant guild hall, then back at Gajeel. "Me…" she sighed.

Gajeel touched his forehead with hers. "Nothing bad will happen to him. I'll make sure of it."

Levy nodded, then backed away so that she could face both of them. "You two, I expect you to get Emma home safely…" she turned to Merlin, "…as well as your friends."

Merlin nodded. "You can count on us. Gihi!"

* * *

"We're back!"

Akane looked up to see Hisoka and Aaron walking in through the front door. Akane could see that Hisoka looked a bit queasy. "What's with you?" he asked.

"Apparently, there are four-wheelers and motorcycles that run without magic," Hisoka explained, setting down the stack of plates he was carrying on the counter. "I'm going to go to bed to recover from that."

Aaron set down another stack of plates and a bag of groceries; Akane could smell fish. "What's with him?" Aaron asked. "It was just a short drive to the village and back."

"Dragonslayers can't handle transportation," Akane explained. "We get horrifyingly motion sick."

"Ah." Aaron looked up at the cabinet. "I see you and River did a good job of fixing that."

Akane nodded. "Although, I think I'm going to go lie down as well. Hisoka and I are still both weakened just by being here."

Aaron nodded in affirmation, and Akane trudged into the guest bedroom, collapsing onto the empty bed, and then looking over at Hisoka. Hisoka was clearly resting, but also wide awake.

"Well, we've been here for two days," Akane thought out loud.

"Four, technically," Hisoka corrected him, "if you count the time we were unconscious."

Akane nodded. "Two days, and I still can't wrap my head around the fact that I'm Acnologia's son."

"I know, right? What are the odds?"

"Well, he should have died back there. And when he didn't, he somehow managed to find someone close to his age, fall in love with her, and then they had a kid, who somehow ended up on Earthland."

"And then another kid in Edolas who somehow ended up in a completely different part of Earthland ended up befriending the son of Acnologia."

Akane looked over at him. "Yup."

"You're still my friend," Hisoka affirmed. "And I'm certain the others will feel the same way."

"Right…" Akane trailed off.

"I wonder how counterparts work for us," Hisoka thought aloud.

"What do you mean?" asked Akane.

"Well, one of your parents is from Earthland, and the other is from Edolas. So do you have an Earthland or Edolas counterpart? Or do you even have a counterpart at all?"

"Hmm…"

"The same goes for me," Hisoka continued, "except that my Earthland parent also had a grandparent from Edolas."

"My best bet," Akane speculated, "is that we probably don't have counterparts."

"I see…" Hisoka paused for a moment, then thought of what to say. "So really, we're the only two humans who are truly our own thing."

Akane laughed. "You could put it that way, yes." Then he changed the subject. "By the way, we need to figure out how to find them."

Hisoka nodded. "Not only that, but we're not really certain where we are."

"Plus, we're weakened just by being in Edolas, so we won't be very effective at any sort of rescue."

"Well, we have to figure out a way. Those are our friends."

Akane nodded.

"Plus, _I_ have to make it back alive."

Akane looked over and gave Hisoka a questioning look.

"I need to survive, so that I can get more powerful, and someday restore Flutlogia's legacy."

"I see."

"I just hope that my family back there is okay."

The two were silent for a moment. Then Akane spoke up.

"It's getting worse. You feel it, right?"

Hisoka nodded. Over the past two days, their condition had worsened. They looked okay on the outside. On the inside, however, it was a bit worse.

"How long would you say we have left?"

"About five days for me," Hisoka theorized. "Seven, perhaps, if I can find a large body of fresh water. As for you, I'm not sure, since I'm not fully aware of your condition. Since you can stay alive and conscious through significantly higher levels of physical damage than most people, I'd say you have a bit longer than me."

"I see," Akane acknowledged. "Then I guess we'd better rescue our friends and get back to Earthland pretty quickly."

"I hope Merlin and the others can get here quickly."

"Yeah," agreed Akane. "I'm pretty sure we won't be able to do this on our own."

"No kidding. We can't use magic, and we're slowly dying."

"And we came in without a plan."

Hisoka sat bolt upright, suddenly realizing the dilemma that Akane had just pointed out. "That's right. We came in, and we would have made quite the appearance…" He leapt out of the bed and dashed out the door.

Akane got up and looked out the door to see what Hisoka was doing. He glared at Hisoka as he found him searching through random drawers and realized what he was doing. "I know you're good at gathering information, but we're kind of in the middle of nowhere."

"…accompanied by at least a few people who probably saw mysterious flashes of light in the sky," added Hisoka. "There's a nearby village, remember?"

"That's right…" Akane realized. "But how do you expect to track them down through distant chaotic flashes of light?"

"Not chaotic," Hisoka corrected. "Well… sort of. But all focused in one place, since the Anima effectively transports entire cities in one piece, even if it doesn't look like it when they're initially sucked in."

"I see…"

"So, if we pinpoint the location…"

"…we find Nashi and Emma!" Akane finished.

"Yup!" Hisoka opened another drawer, and grinned as he pulled out a sheet of paper and set it down with the pen and portable writing surface he had already found. "And I am set!" he strode over to a closed door and knocked loudly. The door opened to reveal Aaron. "Hey, dad," Hisoka greeted. "We need a ride." When Aaron gave him a confused look, Hisoka elaborated: "I know how to track down our friends, but we need to be in the village in order to do so."

"Don't push the favors, Hisoka," Aaron warned him. "You may be our long-lost son, but you're still just a guest."

"Okay, but this is really important to us," Hisoka protested. "It's the reason we're in Edolas in the first place!"

Aaron sighed. "Alright. But after you've found your friends, could you maybe come back to visit?"

Hisoka looked over at Akane, who shrugged. Then Hisoka looked back at his dad. "I don't see why not," he lied. "Our friends would probably like to meet you." He tried to ignore the deathly pain that he could feel spreading through his body.

* * *

Mystogan looked around.

"What?" asked Erza.

"This is all?"

Erza looked around at the Raijinshuu, Laxus, and Asuka, then back at Mystogan. "There are still more coming."

As if on cue, Romeo and Cana came into view, then jogged over to meet them. As usual, Cana was carrying a large barrel of some sort of strong-smelling ale, fitted with backpack straps. Romeo was carrying a bedroll and a small backpack.

"Hey, Asuka," Romeo called. "You think I could borrow one of your guns, since it's kind of my only means of using magic in Edolas?"

"As a matter of fact…" Asuka reached into her side pouch and pulled out a third gun, "…I brought my spare so that you could use it." She tossed the gun to Romeo, who caught it and thanked her.

Evergreen looked over at Cana. "Forgive the rudeness, but why are you going? You're not exactly trained to cope without magic."

"Well, I can beat anyone in a drinking contest…" Cana paused and remembered Bacchus. "Well… anyone who doesn't deliberately get drunk as part of their magic." She glared at Evergreen. "Besides, you're one to talk, dressed like that and with all ability-type magic."

"I'll have you know," Evergreen argued, "that I am merely here to see the rest of my team off. Besides, holder-type magic doesn't do any better in Edolas."

Cana grinned. "That's where you're wrong. Elkhart has an enchantment he can place on magic items. It allows you to use them in Edolas for about a week, I think. Why do you think Freed and Bickslow are coming?"

"True," Evergreen admitted. "Those two aren't exactly physical fighters."

"Oi!" protested Freed. "I have my rapier, and I can do anything to protect my Laxus."

Laxus sighed. "I'd rather you say things like that in private."

"Plus," added Bickslow, "with my padded clothing, pretty much nothing can hurt me."

"Okay, fair," agreed Evergreen.

Just then, Gajeel, Merlin, Lily and the Strauss siblings joined the group.

"I'm just seeing you off," reminded Lily. "I still have to help find the last two of the lost children."

"Actually," Gajeel put in, "I'd like to talk to you about that." Lily transformed to his large form, and Gajeel leaned in, whispering something in Lily's ear. Lily's eyes widened.

"In that case, I will be coming with you," Lily replied, changing his mind.

"Well," concluded Mystogan, "we need to activate the gateway soon, so I hope everyone's here."

"Almost," replied Merlin. "Elkhart said he'd be here to give the holder-type mages some enchantments for their items."

"Again, he'd better get here soon."

They waited a few more minutes. Then Merlin saw four figures approaching. One of them he recognized as Elkhart. Two of them were much taller than Elkhart, and as they got closer, Merlin recognized one of them as the Sabertooth guild master, Sting Eucliffe. The other one he recognized as Sting's husband and partner, Rogue Cheney. The fourth one Merlin didn't recognize at all. They were substantially shorter than Elkhart – even a bit shorter than Merlin, or possibly even William – and while they looked human, they definitely didn't smell human, and they didn't give off any magical power. On top of that, Merlin couldn't discern their gender.

"Who are you?" Merlin asked the nonhuman.

"One of our newer members," replied Sting. "They joined a few months ago."

"What brings you here?" asked Erza.

"We heard you needed help dealing with civil unrest in Edolas," Rogue explained. He tapped the katana strapped to his side. "I'm more than capable of handling things without magic."

"Plus, we're a good team even without magic," added Sting.

Rogue rolled his eyes. "In other words, you worry too much and refuse to let me travel to another world without you."

Sting grinned guiltily.

"Anyway," Rogue continued, "not only that, but Eallesander here doesn't use magic, so they'll be unaffected."

"You don't use magic?" Gajeel inquired. "Then what are you doing in a wizard guild?"

"I have nonmagical powers," replied Eallesander. "Please don't ask me about it, though."

Elkhart, ignoring all of this, headed over to Cana. "Can I see your cards?" Cana handed him her magical deck. He placed his other hand over the deck, and concentrated. A brief flash of light emanated from the cards, then subsided, and he handed them back to Cana. "There. Now they'll work in Edolas."

"Can you do that with my rapier?" asked Freed.

"And my dolls?" Bickslow chimed in.

"I most certainly can." Elkhart held out his hand, and Freed held it out. Elkhart placed the same enchantment that he had placed on Cana's cards. Then he moved to Bickslow, enchanting his five flying dolls one by one. "You'll have to be more careful with these," Elkhart warned. "You won't be able to transfer their souls to other dolls like you can in Earthland."

Bickslow nodded, and Elkhart went over to Merlin, pulling him aside so as to talk in private.

"I know it's hard for you to work without your sister," Elkhart acknowledged. "Both of you experience a huge increase in magical power when you are close to one another."

Merlin nodded. "Yeah, I know, but why are you bringing this up now? Especially since I'm about to go somewhere that I can't use magic."

Elkhart raised his hand, and the elemental focus weapon he had built earlier materialized in his hand. He gave it to Merlin.

"This should work in Edolas," Elkhart explained. "I won't miss it, since I can build another in about a day."

"I see…" Merlin stashed it inside his open overcoat.

"However," Elkhart added, "that's not all you have to rely on."

Merlin looked back at Elkhart in confusion.

"The more magical power you have, the better your physical strength. That's why magic deficiency syndrome exists."

"And why are you telling me this?" asked Merlin.

Elkhart smiled. "Remember when you sprinted all the way to the far side of Pergrande just to rescue William?"

"Yeah…"

Elkhart placed a hand on Merlin's heart. "Physical proximity isn't the only factor in the resonance between you two."

"Okay…" Merlin's hand moved to where Elkhart's hand was, and his eyes filled with realization.

"Keep that in mind," advised Elkhart. "It may save your life."

"But I don't know how…"

"You can still do it." Elkhart removed his hand from Merlin's chest. "I believe in both you and William."

Merlin looked over at Mystogan, then back at Elkhart. "I'll try." As Elkhart smiled, Merlin stepped back into the magic circle that Mystogan had drawn in the ground.

"Is everyone ready?" asked Mystogan.

Everyone gave murmurs of approval.

"Anybody who is planning to go, please step into the magic circle. Otherwise, please get out."

Everyone made sure they were where they were supposed to be. Evergreen stepped out of the circle.

"Activating in three…!"

Merlin pulled out the elemental focus device that Elkhart had given him, blankly staring at it.

"…two…!"

Sting pulled in Rogue in a protective embrace, catching Rogue off guard, who looked at his husband for a second, then sighed and returned the embrace.

"…one…!"

The circle started to glow, and Evergreen and Elkhart backed away, while Eallesander spun around, staring at the circle in awe.

"…Anima, activate!" Mystogan slammed the staff he was holding on the ground. Merlin shielded his eyes as the glow became blinding, and the ground disappeared beneath him, leaving him and everyone else flying through a vortex of energy.

"Crap…" Merlin looked over as he heard Mystogan curse. Mystogan had a focused look on his face. Then he looked around at everyone. "Guys, I underestimated how much power I had! I can't hold us all together, so grab the nearest person. I don't care who it is!" To demonstrate, he grabbed onto Erza, who in turn grabbed Bickslow. Freed looked over at Laxus, who was unfortunately out of reach, so he twisted himself around and grabbed Sting and Rogue. Merlin looked around, panicking, then gave a sigh of relief as he was grabbed by Lily. Eallesander protested when Gajeel grabbed them, though Merlin couldn't hear what they were saying. Cana, Lisanna, Elfman and Mirajane all huddled together, while Romeo and Asuka grabbed each other's hands.

There was another flash, which temporarily blinded Merlin, as well as a disorienting force. Then he felt himself falling, but then pulled up as Lily spread his wings. When his vision cleared, he saw that they were in the middle of a desert, gliding toward… a beach resort? He was confused for a second, then realized that he recognized it.

"That's the beach resort that Nashi and Emma got sucked in with!" Merlin exclaimed, looking up at Lily, who nodded and dove to the center, landing softly on the ground.

Merlin dropped out of Lily's grasp onto the ground, then began to walk forward, but was immediately slammed into by something small and gray. Merlin reacted with surprise, then looked as Henri fell to the ground, landed neatly on her face, and sneezed. Then she looked up at Merlin and Lily. "Well, about time somebody showed up. We've been her for four days."

Merlin looked over to see Thomas flying in.

"You…" Merlin then turned back to see Lily staring at the other two exceeds. There were signs of surprise. As well as what seemed to be tears of joy.

* * *

Laxus got up and dusted himself off. Then he looked around. He had landed on a large animal farm, and could see some large creatures that he'd never seen before. They acted like cows, just grazing and not paying attention to their surroundings, and they had long, flat snouts – sort of like beaks, but still very clearly mammalian – and they were a similar greenish-blue to the strange grass that covered the field. He looked over at the nearby gray farmhouse, and spotted Akane heading towards the entrance. "Oi! Akane!" he called.

Akane looked over and spotted Laxus. Then he jogged over, opened the fence gate, and stepped into the field to meet him. "Laxus! What a coincidence! There's quite a bit you missed out on. For one thing, as it turns out, Hisoka and I are both from Edolas."

"Really now?"

"Yeah. Come on!" They stepped out of the fenced area, and Akane closed the gate behind them. Then they walked toward the house. As they walked, a man stepped out. Laxus's eyes widened in shock and fear. This couldn't be the Edolas version; the smell indicated that he was undeniably the Earthland version that he had fought twenty years ago.

"T-This is a joke, right?" Laxus stammered. "Y-You're dead. We killed you two decades ago."

Acnologia nodded in acknowledgement. "And that was exactly what I deserved. Unfortunately, things didn't go as expected."

"Ah," Akane realized. "I forgot to introduce my, uh… my dad."

Laxus stared at Akane in shock "Your…?"

* * *

"A forest," Erza complained. "Juuust great."

"Don't worry," Mystogan reassured her. "If this is like most forests in Edolas, we should be able to find civilization nearby."

Erza nodded. "I hope you're right."

"Seriously, though," Bickslow complained. "I can't exactly move easily through a forest."

Mystogan sighed in annoyance. "I'm sure we'll find a familiar landmark. Just follow me."

Sting looked up at the sky, intrigued by the multiple large bodies. "Well, that's impressive."

Rogue sighed at Sting's enthusiasm and looked around the vast, blue plain. "Whatever, but we have to find some sort of sign of civilization."

"What about that cottage over there?" suggested Freed.

The two dragonslayers looked over to where Freed was pointing. There was a small cottage with a vegetable garden next to it and smoke coming out of the chimney. There was also a pile of split logs on the porch.

The trio walked over to the porch, and Rogue reached out and knocked on the door. There were a few muffled footsteps, and the door opened. Freed, Sting and Rogue all gawked in surprise as they saw the black-haired man who stood before them.

"Zeref?!"

* * *

Gajeel looked around him, then down at Eallesander.

"Well, it appears we've landed in Sycca."

"Okay."

Gajeel grinned. "And I think there's a good chance we'll run into an old friend of mine."

Eallesander's heart sank. "Does that mean I have to meet new people?"

"Sorry, kid," Gajeel apologized. "Besides, you seem okay with meeting me."

"Yeah, but there's just one of you."

Gajeel sighed. "Well, unfortunately for you, my nose tells me there's about to be two of me."

Eallesander groaned in disapproval.

* * *

"Well, this is an interesting place to land." Romeo looked down at the tower that he and Asuka had landed on top of.

"Indeed." Asuka looked around at the rest of the castle and the surrounding city. "And there's a mob of people surrounding the castle."

"Any idea how to get down?" asked Romeo. "I can't hold onto this spire forever."

Asuka looked at her guns. "I could use wind magic. We'd survive, but the landing's going to hurt."

* * *

"Any luck?" asked Elfman.

Mirajane looked down at her hand. It was still human. She looked back at Elfman and shook her head.

"Unfortunate," remarked Lisanna. "We hoped that since your magic has demonic properties, it might be able to work like curse power."

"Well, we still have my magic, thanks to Elkhart's enchantment." Cana drew a card from her deck and threw it up in the air, then watched the direction in which it glided. "I think we're supposed to go this way."

"Well, we'll have to trust your cards," agreed Lisanna. "I can't be sure where we are without a familiar landmark."

"Well, then," Elfman enthusiastically declared, "let's get this expedition started!"

* * *

 **Well, it seems I have left a few things to explain in upcoming chapters. I'm also really curious as to what you guys are thinking, so be sure to leave a review. And as always, hope you enjoyed!**


	9. Anima Arc - Nashi's Rebellion

"Good thing we weren't impaled by that thing," Romeo commented, looking up at the point of the castle spire that he and Asuka were holding on to.

Asuka looked down. "Right. Can you be quiet while I figure out the safest drop?"

"Sorry." Romeo looked at the gun Asuka had given him. "You don't suppose it might be a better idea to use fire magic rather than wind? I'm pretty sure we'd get more thrust."

Asuka pointed a finger at Romeo in acknowledgement. "Good point. Plus, then you could help."

Romeo nodded. "You know, I could use my sticky flames to lower us safely."

Asuka shook her head and pointed out at the city below. "We want to land out there, and we're at the center of the castle right now."

"I see," Romeo realized.

"Anyway," Asuka grabbed onto Romeo, letting go of the spire, "we should get down. On the count of three, we jump, and you use your gun to thrust away from the tower."

Romeo nodded.

"After that, we'll both point our guns down and slow our fall. Again, we can't slow ourselves down very quickly, so the landing's going to hurt. A lot. Ready? One…"

Romeo removed one hand from the spire, and reached for his gun.

"…two…"

He pointed his gun in the direction of the roof.

"…three!" Romeo let go, shooting fire out of his gun, and both wizards pushed off from the roof, propelled by the flames toward the city below. As they shot over the city, Asuka pointed her guns in the direction they were moving, and pulled the trigger on both of them. Romeo then pointed his gun in the direction Asuka was aiming, contributing to the thrust. They descended toward the ground, tumbling hard into the cobblestone. As he hit the ground, Romeo felt something break, and he sprawled on the ground, clutching his left ankle in pain.

Asuka got up, wincing as various places on her body hurt. She was probably going to get quite a few bruises from that. She looked over at Romeo, who was still lying on the ground, holding his ankle, and she stood up, walking over to him.

"You okay?"

Romeo shakily turned his head toward Asuka. "Y-Yeah," he grunted. "I think I broke my ankle, though."

"I see…" Asuka knelt down, sliding her hand under him. "Come on."

Romeo sat up, then winced in pain as he put an arm around Asuka's shoulder, allowing her to pull him up. "I think I cracked a rib or two as well."

Asuka sighed, then they both looked around and saw where they had landed for the first time.

Surrounding them was a mass of people, many of who were armed.

"What?!"

Romeo looked where Asuka was looking as he heard her shocked exclamation.

Standing among them, differently dressed from what either of them could ever remember her wearing, was none other than Nashi.

* * *

"Your… d-dad?" Laxus stammered. "Acnologia is your…?"

Akane nodded.

"More importantly, Acnologia is alive?!" Laxus turned and pointed a finger at Acnologia. "We watched you die!"

"You watched me dematerialize," Acnologia corrected. "I did deserve to die, after all of the grief and despair that I caused. There's no question about that. Natsu's seven-dragon attack on my soul, combined with Fairy Sphere paralyzing my body, should have obliterated me. I still don't know how it sent me to Edolas."

"Yeah…" Laxus stepped over to Acnologia, grabbing him by his cloak and pulling him close. "You should have!"

"I'm sorry," Acnologia put simply, not resisting Laxus's hostile gesture.

Laxus's eyes widened in surprise. He let go of Acnologia. "W-What?" he stammered.

"You heard me. Now kill me if you want. Just because it's been twenty years doesn't mean I no longer deserve to die."

"You… apologized…"

"What of it?" demanded Acnologia. "I'm right here, waiting for you to take your revenge, so just take it!"

"Yeah," Laxus agreed, regaining his composure. "It caught me off guard, that's all. I mean, you of all people, apologizing?"

Acnologia nodded. "Everyone I loved was killed by dragons, and I overreacted, deciding that all dragons were inherently evil. And as I became more powerful, it drove me mad, and I devastated the world, not just dragons."

Laxus stood there, taking in everything Acnologia said.

"Anyway, the best I can do now is say I'm sorry," Acnologia finished. "None of those lives I destroyed are coming back."

"Damn right they aren't," Laxus fumed. "You expect me to accept that apology?"

Acnologia shook his head. "The apology was the best I could give. The last thing I expect is for you to forgive me just like that."

Laxus looked around at the farm, the house, then at Akane. "You say he's your dad?"

Akane nodded nervously.

Laxus looked back at Acnologia. "So you started yourself a family?"

"Yeah, but what does that have to do with…?"

Laxus cut him off. "Then you have something to live for. I'm not going to touch that."

Akane smiled. "Thanks, Laxus!"

"I still don't forgive you though," added Laxus. "That's never going to happen."

Acnologia nodded. "I understand."

Laxus looked around. "Nice place, though."

Acnologia smiled. "I know, right? It was just a run-down shack when Anna and I got started on it."

"Anna?"

"My wife," Acnologia explained. "The Edolas version of your Anna. She's also a former immortal. But we've both put that behind us."

"I see." Laxus was then distracted by the sound of irregular footsteps. He turned to see Hisoka stumbling towards them, carrying what appeared to be some rough sketches. "Uh… are you alright?"

"That four-wheeler is going to be the death of me…" Hisoka mumbled. "I can't believe I have to use transportation."

"Ah…" Laxus realized why Hisoka was behaving this way and gave a sigh of relief.

"Huh?" Hisoka looked up, saw Laxus, then jumped to attention, dropping the sketches on the ground and turning to Akane. "When did he get here?"

"Just a few minutes ago," replied Akane. "We've been discussing the fact that Acnologia's still alive."

"Ah, that." Hisoka looked at Acnologia, then at Laxus. "Well, as you can very clearly see, Acnologia is still alive."

"Yeah. I kind of got that," Laxus replied. "Anything new?"

Hisoka grinned. "As a matter of fact, _Uncle_ Laxus, yes, there is."

Laxus's eyes widened, and his jaw dropped. "U-Uncle?" he stammered.

Hisoka's response was to burst out laughing.

Laxus turned to Akane. "Th-This is some kind of joke, right?"

Akane shook his head. "We found out two days ago. Would you like to meet your brother?"

"Brother?" Laxus looked over to see another man who was now standing next to Hisoka.

"Onii-san?" Aaron queried.

"A-Aaron?"

Aaron smiled.

"But how?"

"Anima, I'm guessing," Aaron theorized. "After all, I'm not the only one who got caught up in that."

Laxus nodded. "When we thought Lisanna had been killed, she actually ended up in Edolas."

"Lisanna?"

"One of our guild wizards. But how did you not get sent back by the reverse Anima?"

Aaron shrugged. "Possibly because I don't actually have any magic," he replied. "I inherited the gene for it, which explains Hisoka here, but I don't have any myself."

"Anyway," Hisoka added, "now we know why Nashi thought we smelled similar."

Laxus gave a nod of confirmation.

"More importantly," Hisoka continued, picking up the sketches, "I think I know where to start looking." He pulled out a sheet of paper with what seemed to be a panoramic view of the horizon sketched on it. There were a couple of lines drawn at one point in the sky. He then spread out the sheet on the ground and, looking back at the distant village, reoriented the paper. He then stood up and pointed in the direction that the lines indicated in the sketch. "we need to go that way."

"Hold on a minute…" Akane interrupted. "This isn't within walking distance, is it?"

Hisoka's heart sank as he realized the grim reality of what his friend had just said. "No," he whimpered, and pointed at the four-wheeler. "It's about two days even in _that_ thing."

"You've got to be joking…" Laxus trailed off.

"Oh, yeah," Hisoka realized. "You're a dragonslayer, too. But the thought of you of all people getting motion sickness…" He snickered a bit.

"Shut up!" Laxus warned, giving Hisoka a condescending glare.

"Right!" Hisoka immediately stopped laughing. "Anyway, yeah. We're going to be riding… in a vehicle… for two days…" he trailed off as he reminded himself of how they had to get there. Then he snapped back to attention. "Anyway, Dad, it'll have to be either you or mom who drives us."

"Is that really how you ask a favor of someone?" inquired Aaron.

Hisoka realized what he had said. "Please?" he asked. "First of all, we don't have a vehicle, and also, none of us could drive if our lives depended on it."

Aaron nodded. "Fair enough. But I'll need you to give me directions."

"Uuuhhh…" Hisoka started to say something, then realized the problem with this. "My sense of direction doesn't work properly when I'm motion sick."

"I see…" Aaron paused to think. "How long would it take you to recover after the vehicle stops?"

"Not sure…" Hisoka thought back to other times he'd been motion sick. "I once spent two weeks on a boat, and it took me about two hours to recover from that.

"I think that should work," Aaron replied. "We can make four two-hour stops – two per day."

Hisoka nodded. "I'm going to need to memorize the direction before we leave." He looked up at the sun and the various moons in the sky, then in the direction they needed to go, memorizing their relation to one another. "If I memorize where we're going in relation to the sky, then I can use that to reorient myself when I'm recovering."

Aaron nodded. "I'll go pack some supplies. Any of you are welcome to help."

* * *

"Well, then…" Nashi pulled up a chair next to the pole where Romeo and Asuka were tied up and sat down in it, "…where should I start? There are _so_ many things that the kingdom now has to explain itself out of."

Romeo chuckled, despite the intense throbbing in his ankle. "You know, I actually briefly thought you were our Nashi."

"Same," Asuka agreed. "Edolas really is an interesting place."

Nashi raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean 'your' Nashi?"

"The Nashi that we're here to rescue," explained Asuka. "To put it simply, your Earthland counterpart."

"Yeah," Nashi snorted. "That's _super_ believable." She walked over and gave Romeo's left foot a kick, causing him to grunt in pain, then knelt down to his eye level. "Now, would you mind telling me exactly what the king is hiding? I will warn you that it's going to take a lot to talk yourselves out of this, considering you just flew from the castle and attacked us. _With_ magic, no less!"

Asuka huffed in annoyance. "We didn't 'attack' you. If we were attacking you, we would have easily taken you down. We were just trying to get down from that castle spire."

Nashi looked across at Asuka, then stood up and walked over to face the dark-green-haired young woman. "Uh-huh." She stroked her own chin in mock consideration, then looked down at Asuka. "And I suppose you just magically appeared on that spire?"

Asuka rolled her eyes in annoyance. "I'm not sure what's so hard to believe about that, but yes. For your information, that's exactly what happened."

Nashi burst out laughing, then returned to her chair while Asuka and Romeo twisted themselves around so that they could both see her. "True, teleportation is possible. However, I don't really believe that two people would just randomly appear on top of a castle spire and not know how they got there."

Asuka groaned in exasperation. "We came through an Anima."

"Yeah," Nashi continued. "You just came through an Anima for no reason and landed on top of the royal castle."

"We're here to rescue our friends, who got sucked into a randomly occurring Anima by accident," Romeo pointed out. "One of them is your Earthland counterpart. You may have noticed our reaction when we first saw you?"

"Not really," Nashi replied. She then got up and headed for the door. "You're not going anywhere until you start talking." She exited the tent.

"Ideas?" Romeo asked Asuka.

Asuka shook her head. "They took our guns, so we have no means of using magic. We'll have to look for something in the room that can help."

Romeo nodded, then looked down at his legs. "And this ankle isn't making things any better."

"Yeah. Nashi could have at least helped with that. It's not that uncommon to provide first aid to prisoners."

"Maybe she just hates magic-users that much," Romeo suggested.

Asuka shrugged.

"Well, according to Mystogan, there are a bunch of civilians rebelling because they think the kingdom is secretly withholding magic from the public. I guess she's one of them."

"Not only that. She seems to be a rebellion leader."

"So, not that different from our Nashi?"

Asuka laughed. "Well, our Nashi isn't exactly a leader. She just pushes on without caring much if other people follow."

"True," Romeo acknowledged.

* * *

"Huh?!" Nashi exclaimed.

"I know," Lucy acknowledged. "It would be a bit weird for you, just like it was a bit weird for me when I first saw you."

"Oh, it's beyond weird," Nashi corrected. "I would really like to kill Edo-me at this point! Soiling my reputation like that…"

"What's going on?" Edo-Emma asked as she and her Earthland counterpart entered the guild hall.

Nashi turned to them. "Apparently, my Edolas counterpart is the one leading that rebellion up at the castle."

"That is strange," Earth-Emma agreed. "However, it's not as strange as finding out that my Edolas counterpart is straight."

"She's what?" Nashi looked between the two of them, surprised.

"Still," Earth-Emma continued, "I can totally see you running a dumb rebellion like that."

"Huh?" Nashi strode over to Earth-Emma and grabbed her by the shirt collar. "And what do you mean by that?!"

"Nothing in particular." Earth-Emma grinned and head-butted Nashi in the forehead, causing her to reel back in pain, clutching her forehead. "And just so you know, I may not be able to use magic, but I still have an iron skeleton."

"You are sooo going to regret that!" Nashi lunged back at Emma, tackling her to the ground. The two dragonslayers exchanged blow after blow while everyone else watched in exasperation.

"As perfectly fine I am with most of our differences," Edo-Emma commented, looking down at them, "that hotheadedness I could do with less of."

William sighed. "If that's what my sister is like in Earthland, I dread seeing what I'm like."

Edo-Emma walked over to her sister. "Yeah. I imagine she's probably something like this."

They sat at the table in silence for a bit. Then Emma spoke up.

"Merlin's still alive in Earthland."

William looked over at her. "Seriously?"

Emma nodded and indicated her Earthland counterpart, who was still fighting with Nashi. "She told me."

William gave a weak smile. "That's good to know."

"Alright! Enough already!" Lucy stepped into the fight and slammed her hands into a specific point on the backs of Nashi's and Earth-Emma's necks, causing them to both collapse, unable to move. "I gave you permission to stay in our guild, but you need to behave! That means not destroying our guild hall with these fights!"

"Aye…" Nashi said weakly, trying to move her hand, and succeeding in making it shake weakly.

"You'll be able to move normally again in about a minute," Lucy informed them. "Also, no fighting in my guild hall. Understand?"

Nashi and Emma both managed a nod.

Edo-Emma glanced at this scene, then looked back at William. "Well, anyway, it's comforting to know he's still out there, right?"

William shook her head. "He may be Merlin, but he's not our brother. It just reminds me of what happened to _our_ Merlin."

Emma placed a comforting hand on her sister's shoulder. "Hey. What happened wasn't your fault."

"Mm…" William stared off into space.

* * *

"Yo! Gajeel!" Gajeel strode over to the bar counter to meet his Edolas counterpart.

Edo-Gajeel's eyes widened in surprise, then he broke into a smile. "Long time no see."

Earth-Gajeel nodded. "Twenty-one years."

"Twenty-eight," Edo-Gajeel corrected.

"Maybe for you," Earth-Gajeel acknowledged. "I, however, was in suspended animation for seven years."

"How did that happen?"

"Long story short: a dragon attack and a protective spell. Anyway, how've you been?"

"Well, I got married, had a few kids, even got an apprentice. Also, you grew a beard? And got a haircut?!"

Earth-Gajeel grinned. "What do you think?"

"It's interesting," Edo-Gajeel replied. "Unfortunately, I'm not sure Levy would approve of me growing one."

"You married Levy?!" Earth-Gajeel exclaimed. "Me, too! Well, Earthland Levy, to be exact."

"Intriguing…" Edo-Gajeel then remembered something. "By the way, may I introduce you to my apprentice?" He led Earth-Gajeel over to a table, whose eyes widened in surprise at the person already sitting there.

Earth-Gajeel looked back at Eallesander, then over at Edo-Gajeel's apprentice. "Now, that's an interesting coincidence."

"Earth-me, this is Alex. Alex, Earth-Gajeel."

Alex looked up at the two, and their eyes widened in surprise. They looked at Edo-Gajeel, then at Earth-Gajeel. Then their eyes fell on Eallesander. "You're… me?"

Eallesander's pupils dilated to an inhuman degree. "Wait… I have an Edolas counterpart?"

Earth-Gajeel nodded. "Humans, exceeds, even dragons… all living creatures have counterparts between the two worlds."

Eallesander opened their mouth to argue, then shut it, realizing that arguing with that would lead to them having to tell Gajeel what they were, which they weren't ready for. They looked over at their Edolas counterpart. "Alex, right?"

Alex nodded. "That would be me."

Eallesander stiffly stuck out a hand. "I'm Eallesander. Nice to meet you."

Alex looked down at the extended hand, then extended their own hand and shook. "Um… you seem a bit nervous."

"Do I?" Eallesander queried. "Well, I maybe it's that I just ended up in a completely different world and I'm meetingabunchofnewpeopleandtheresnobodyIknowhere-andIjustmetacopyofmeandIdontknowhowtohandlethisand…"

Alex placed their hands on both of Eallesander's shoulders. "Calm down," they reassured. "Why don't we go somewhere alone?"

Eallesander nodded nervously, and the two walked out of the bar and onto the street. Alex looked around and spotted an unoccupied dwelling. The two made their way over and entered the building.

"H-How did I do?" Eallesander stuttered.

"Honestly, it could have gone worse," Alex replied.

"I get nervous around people." Eallesander sat down on a nearby staircase.

"I can see that," Alex acknowledged. "Is this better?"

Eallesander nodded. "I just need a few minutes. Then we can meet back up with those two."

Alex sat down next to them. "So what's Earthland like?"

Eallesander shrugged. "Full of magic."

Alex rolled their eyes. "I was looking for some interesting details."

"Well…" Eallesander thought for a moment. "Well, for one thing, magic can exist outside of lacrima. In fact, it's scattered around the air. It gives me a sort of tingling sensation, and the absence of that from being here feels weird."

"What about the world itself?" Alex specified. "Not just the magic there."

"Well, it's a lot like this one. We have kingdoms, guilds, all sorts of different kinds of food… there are a few differences, though. Earthland is a planet and not a moon, for one thing, and it even has its own moon…"

"Wait… wouldn't that mean an unbreathable atmosphere and crushing gravity?"

Eallesander shook their head. "It's not a gas planet, like Edolas' host planet. It's small and rocky, just like Edolas, and its moon is even smaller."

"I see…" Alex pulled out a notepad and started taking notes. "And what's life like there?"

* * *

"The truth is," Romeo began, "we were summoned out of Earthland by the kingdom."

"Yeah," Asuka agreed. It wasn't technically a lie, even though they were trying to deceive Nashi. "And if you imprison us for too long, you will anger the king and he will cause us to explode with unimaginable power." That, on the other hand, was a lie. "You should release us before it's too late."

"Right," Romeo agreed. "And our guns will do the same thing."

"And what if I just kill you?" Nashi speculated.

Romeo's eyes widened as he tried to come up with something.

"That," Asuka broke in, "will just cause it to happen instantly."

"Yeah."

"You'll have to do better than that," Nashi glowered. "You're wearing my patience thin."

"Well, we had to come up with something," Romeo retorted, "since you wouldn't believe us when we told you the truth."

"What truth?" Nashi asked mockingly. "I didn't hear any truth."

"You're not the only one whose patience is wearing thin," Romeo fumed.

"And what do you expect to do?" Nashi asked.

"Get incredibly impatient," Romeo put simply. "Do I have to be capable of doing something about it?"

Nashi shook her head. "Admittedly, no, and I won't let you. you can stay there until you're ready to fess up."

* * *

"You okay back there?" Aaron asked.

Hisoka whimpered unintelligibly.

Suddenly, something slammed into the windshield. Aaron turned the steering wheel in surprise and slammed his foot on the brakes. "What the hell?!" The three dragonslayers in the back were knocked around, groaning in discomfort as the four-wheeler swerved and skidded to a stop. The gray shape dropped to the ground, and Aaron jumped out to see a gray, fluffy exceed getting up, regaining her bearings, and flying back up to eye level. "An exceed?" Another door opened, and the dragonslayers tumbled out of the vehicle in a heap. They then got up, and Hisoka looked over at the exceed. "Henri! Are you okay?"

Henri nodded. "I'm fine. What about you? Both your skin and Akane's skin appear to be glittering a bit."

Hisoka looked down at his arm, and realized what Henri was talking about. He could just barely make out tiny particles of lacrima embedded in there. He looked over at Akane and saw that he was experiencing the same effect. "Uh, I'm not sure," he lied. He didn't want Aaron, Henri or Laxus to be worrying about him and Akane. "Some sort of Edolas effect, I'm guessing."

Henri gave Hisoka a worried look. She could tell something was wrong, but she knew she wouldn't get anything out of him.

Akane looked up past Henri. "Is that… the missing beach resort?"

Henri nodded. "Thomas, Merlin and Panther Lily are also here."

"Panther Lily," Hisoka inquired. "So he's back from that mission he was doing with the other exceeds?"

Henri nodded. "As a matter of fact, we've got something to say regarding that, as soon as we get back to the rendezvous point."

"Right…" Hisoka reached into the four-wheeler and got out two bows and a pair of quivers, handing one of the sets to Akane.

"Bows?" Henri inquired.

Hisoka nodded. "We can't use magic, so we need some way of fighting."

"What about Laxus?"

"I have plenty of physical power," Laxus replied. "And it seems I have a limited reserve of magic that I can still use."

Hisoka turned to Aaron. "Well, dad, thanks for taking us this far. I think we can travel on foot from here."

Aaron nodded. "I hope to see you again one day." He got back into the four-wheeler, started up the engines, and drove back the way they had come. The dragonslayers covered their noses to block out the exhaust fumes."

"Well, then," Henri gestured for the others to follow and turned toward the beach resort, "let's go."

* * *

 **This chapter may have been a bit of a mess due to all of the alternating points of view. Tell me what you think. And as always, hope you enjoyed!**


	10. Anima Arc - Lost and Found

A white trail of energy streaked above the shore of the continent, heading inland. A snow hare looked up at the phenomenon, then scampered off. The trail of energy came down on the forest, landing on the ground and fading to reveal a short, red-haired boy. A maroon Fairy Tail guildmark overlapped his right eye, and he wore a dark blue cloak with a dark gray coat and thick brown pants underneath. He looked up at the trees.

"Merlin was right," Elkhart commented to himself. "There's something unsettling about this place. These trees shouldn't be able to survive in this climate." He walked further inland, following the source of the incredible magic power he was detecting. He reached his destination, finding a white orb covered in moss. He looked down, making sure he hadn't stepped on any of the moss. It may have been able to heal William, but he was unsure what other effects it might have. He found a few bare spots and stepped there, approaching the lacrima and kneeling down. "What are you?" He materialized a magical scanner from his requip inventory, and he began scanning the lacrima. "Similar to Anima, like Merlin described. No…" His expression changed to that of concern. "It's not just similar." He stood up and backed away, finding a spot on the ground, and got some camping equipment out of his requip inventory. He then pointed at the lacrima. "You, my friend, are going to be analyzed some more. But first, I'm going to get some food and sleep." He continued to set up his tent.

* * *

"Again, sorry about our initial reaction," Freed apologized.

"It's fine," Arleos reassured him. "I've studied quite a bit about your world, including my counterpart, Zeref Dragneel. I can understand why you wouldn't like him, and why you would be surprised to see his face."

"Edolas is an interesting place," Sting commented, looking through the window out at the darkening sky.

"Oh, this isn't Edolas," Arleos corrected.

This got Rogue's attention. "Wait… we're not in Edolas?"

Arleos laughed and opened the front door, beckoning for the others to follow. They followed him outside, and he pointed towards a green-and-tan moon with dashes of blue and white. "That's Edolas."

Sting looked down at the ground, and his jaw dropped. "The grass is glowing!"

The others looked down. Then Arleos looked up at Sting and nodded. "Most of the moons in this system glow in the dark. Edolas is the only one that doesn't."

"Wait…" Rogue interrupted. "We came here through a magic that was specifically designed to send things between Earthland and Edolas, so how did we end up on neither of those worlds?"

"Probably an error of some sort," Arleos theorized. "That direct line takes an incredible degree of accuracy, since the distance between Edolas and Earthland is about two hundred million times the distance between Edolas and Caerut."

"Caerut?"

"The moon that we're currently standing on."

"Ah."

"Arleos! I'm home!"

Everyone turned their heads to see a petite woman heading towards them, carrying a large dead animal on her shoulders. Freed marveled at the fact that she, with her size, was able to carry the creature without losing her balance. Then he realized who she was. "Mavis's Edolas counterpart, I presume?" He continued to stare at the dead creature she was carrying.

Arleos nodded. "This is my wife, Mio. She's been out hunting all afternoon."

Mio set down her load and looked up at the three wizards. "Who are these people?"

"They're from Earthland," Arleos explained.

Mio tilted her head. "How did they end up here and not on Edolas, then?"

"We were headed to Edolas via Anima, and there was an error," Rogue replied.

"I see."

"You can stay with us for now," Arleos invited. "While you're doing that, we can try to get you guys to Edolas. We do have the equipment for that."

Sting's eyes widened. "Seriously?!"

Arleos nodded. "It's not magic, so it's a journey of several days. However, we can get you the supplies to last you through that trip."

"I see." Freed looked up at Edolas, then back at Arleos. "Why are you going to so much trouble just to help us?"

"We're not," Mio explained. "We were already planning to send our son over on his seventeenth birthday, which is in about a week. We'd just need to figure out how to get the vehicle to carry three more passengers."

Sting and Rogue's jaws dropped, and they both stared at Mio profoundly. "V-Vehicle…?" Sting stammered.

"It's a vehicle?" Rogue asked weakly.

"Yeah. Is something wrong with that?"

"They're dragonslayers," Freed replied. "They…"

"Ah. Right. I am well aware of dragonslayers and their inability to function on vehicles. However, it is the only way from here to Edolas. Plus, you will mostly be floating through space in zero gravity, which shouldn't cause motion sickness. It's just the initial launch and entering Edolas's atmosphere that you should worry about."

Sting and Rogue gave a sigh of relief.

"Unfortunately, it's only designed to carry one person," Arleos added. "It could take quite some time to redesign it for three extra passengers."

Freed nodded. "So be it. Laxus can hold his own, even if I like helping him. And I'm sure the others are going to find Nashi and Emma."

"Unless they landed on other moons as well," Rogue pointed out.

"I doubt it," Mio replied. "I saw the flash of light as you arrived, and at the same time, I saw a similar, but much larger flash on Edolas."

Sting looked up at the green-and-brown moon in the sky. "I hope Eallesander is alright."

"Oh, yeah!" Rogue suddenly remembered their newest guildmate. "Well, we saw Gajeel grab them."

"Right," Sting acknowledged. "Still, though… remember how we found them? And they've never been outside of our guild's company since then. I worry about how they'll cope."

Rogue turned to Sting and placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "They'll be fine. For one thing, they're with Gajeel, and I trust him. Also, nobody in Edolas knows their secret."

Sting smiled. "Yeah. I guess you're right."

Arleos clapped his hands together so as to get everybody's attention. "Anyway, let's go inside. Dinner's almost ready, and I think you should get introduced to our son, since you're going to be spending a week in a sealed pod with him."

Freed nodded. "To be fair, I am a bit hungry."

* * *

The hotel cashier looked down at the money that had been placed on the counter, then back up at Cana. "Sorry. We don't accept foreign currency."

"Well, we kind of just came from a parallel world where the currency local to this place isn't available to us."

"Uh huh. And I'm the King of Edolas."

"It's true!" Cana insisted. "We're travelers from Earthland."

"Nice try, but nothing's been able to travel between the two worlds for the past twenty-eight years," the cashier flatly put. "If you had been in Edolas for that long, you would have plenty of the local currency. So pay in local currency or get out."

Cana sighed. "All the magic disappeared from Edolas back then, right?"

"Yes. Everyone knows that."

Cana took a card and held it in her hand. The card then burst into flame, startling everyone in the room. Then the flames died down, and Cana placed the unaffected card back in her deck. She smiled innocently at the shocked cashier. "Explain that, then."

The cashier stared at the deck Cana was holding, then looked back up at Cana. "W-Well, i-it's still against hotel policy to accept foreign currency," she stuttered.

"We still need a place to stay, though. Please?"

"There's really nothing I can do…"

"Their rooms are on me," a voice behind them offered. Cana, Lisanna, Mira and Elfman turned to see a man in tattered robes. His hair was mostly a dark shade of indigo, with a single white streak. "You're all Fairy Tail wizards, right?"

"Yeah," Elfman confirmed. "Who are you?"

"First, I'll get you all rooms. Then we'll talk." He walked up to the counter, then turned to them. "How many rooms?"

"Cana and I would like our own room with a shared bed," Mira replied.

"I guess Lisanna and I will share a room – separate beds," Elfman added.

The man nodded and turned to the cashier. "What they said." He got some money out of a small sack and put it on the counter. The cashier then took the money, rang it up, and gave back the change. "Thank you." The man put the change back in his sack, and the cashier gave him two keys. He motioned to the wizards. "Come with me." They followed him up a stairway, along a hallway, over to two doors. He unlocked one of the doors, looked inside, and turned back to the group. "Elfman, Lisanna, it looks like this one's yours." He handed Lisanna the key he had used to unlock it, then unlocked the other door. "…which means this one is for Cana and Mira." He gave Mira the other key, then headed for another door and unlocked it with a third key. "Come into my room. I'll tell you everything."

The four wizards followed the man into his room, and they all found places to sit.

"I'm Hughes," the man introduced himself. "I'm part of the royal court."

"Hughes?" Lisanna inquired. "Aren't you one of the ones that Natsu fought?"

Hughes nodded. "I trust that King Jellal told you the basics?"

"He told us that there's a rebellion going on in the capital," Cana replied, removing the barrel of alcohol from her back and leaning against it. "And we already knew about the random Anima. In fact, part of the reason we're here is to rescue two of our guildmates who got caught up in one."

"I see. Well, yeah. There have been randomly occurring Anima on both worlds, and some of the citizens think it's our doing. Most of us are busy defending the castle, but some of us, like me and Jellal, are seeking outside assistance."

Lisanna nodded. "Cana may be the only one here who can use magic. However, we'll all do what we can."

Hughes smiled. "That's good to know." He got up from the floor. "I've nothing else to say right now. We can sort things out tomorrow."

The Fairy Tail mages exchanged glances, then got up and headed for their respective rooms.

* * *

Hisoka looked at Lily, then at Henri and Thomas.

"So, you two are the last of the one hundred?"

Henri nodded.

Lily smiled. "The search is officially done. Once we return to Earthland, we can go visit the others and celebrate."

Hisoka smiled. "That's great! Henri, you and Thomas finally get to meet your families!"

"I suppose so." Henri gave a bit of a smile.

Hisoka turned to Merlin. "I see you were successful in finding help."

Merlin nodded. "We were separated, as Mystogan didn't have enough power to keep us together through the Anima…"

"Mystogan?"

"Uh, yeah…" Merlin raised an eyebrow at Hisoka. "I would assume Laxus would have told you by now, considering we got here two days ago."

Laxus rolled his eyes. "I was busy trying not to throw up. We were in a four-wheeler for most of those two days."

"Ah. Well, Mystogan showed up at the guild. Apparently there've been issues with the citizens rebelling. Some sort of misunderstanding regarding the Anima."

"So, how's Will doing?" asked Akane.

"She's getting better by the day," Merlin replied. "Though she is a bit worried about you and Emma."

Akane nodded. "To be fair, we did kind of jump in without thinking."

"Yeah, that was one of the points she brought up."

"Then she's absolutely right. We really should have thought things through first."

"Well, the Anima was closing up," Hisoka pointed out. "We needed to think fast."

Merlin sighed. "Well, it appears we actually do have a way back now, since Mystogan has a way of controlling the Anima. But how are we going to find Nashi and Emma?"

"Well, I thought we'd find them here," Hisoka admitted. "The people I questioned did mention a smaller trail of light diverging from the one I tracked down to this place, but I never asked which direction it was going. I suppose I should have, though."

Henri nodded. "I take it that would be Nashi and Emma?"

"Most likely." Hisoka looked out at the horizon. "I suppose we could try tracking down one of the other flashes of light? Our best bet is to find the others."

Thomas pointed. "I did see one over that way two days ago. It was pointed straight down. There were others, but that's the only one whose direction I remember."

Hisoka looked in the direction Thomas had pointed, then at Thomas. "I see."

"I'm not certain about this," Lily speculated, "but I think that's where the Royal City is located."

Suddenly, Merlin noticed something odd about Akane. "Are you alright?"

Akane tilted his head. "I'm fine. Why?"

"You and Hisoka are acting a bit strange – like you're in pain. And you both appear to have a bit of a – well – glittery texture to your skin."

Akane sighed. "Our souls are reacting a bit weirdly to being in Edolas. It's something with the way magic behaves here. We'll be fine." He didn't want to worry them by explaining that they would die within a few days, and he could tell Hisoka felt the same way about the matter.

"You sure?"

"Well, Hisoka got briefly possessed by his inner dragon, but only because he recognized Acnologia."

Merlin's eyes widened, and Henri and Lily whipped around to face Akane. "Acnologia?!"

Thomas noticed the reaction and turned to the others. "Who's Acnologia."

Akane sighed. "Before you ask, I do not mean his Edolas counterpart. And no, I'm not going to repeat the explanation to everyone we meet who doesn't know yet. I'll explain everything once we all get home."

"Acnologia is still alive…?" Lily began to tremble in fear.

"You don't have anything to worry about," Akane reassured him.

"Akane's right," Laxus chimed in. "He's no longer trying to destroy anything."

"That's hardly the point," Lily argued.

"Acnologia's continued existence is hardly the point," Laxus replied. "I'm sorry, but that's not important at the moment."

Akane nodded, then turned to Hisoka. "Anyway, you were saying?"

Hisoka looked over where Thomas had pointed, then back at Akane. "Well, I guess we head for the royal city, since it's our best lead. Lily, I'm going to guess that you can carry more than one person in that form?"

"I could maybe carry two," Lily replied. "But they would have to be relatively light."

Hisoka looked around the group. "Well, Akane and I can't use Aera here, even though it's an exceed magic. So that leaves Lily, Thomas and Henri with flying capabilities. Then there's me, Merlin, Akane, and Laxus…"

"I think Lily should carry you and Akane," Laxus suggested to Hisoka. "You're the lightest one out of the four of us, and Merlin and Akane weigh about the same, I'm guessing."

"Henri is better with heavy loads than I am," Thomas said to Laxus. "I think she should carry you."

"I guess that leaves me with Thomas," Merlin conceded. "That works."

Laxus nodded. "I think that setup is the best we can get."

Everyone nodded in agreement.

Akane looked around at the people at the beach resort. "So what do we do about them."

"Try to remember them," replied Thomas. "It's the only thing we can do, since we can't take them with us."

Akane nodded. "I suppose you're right."

Thomas flew over and got a firm grip on Merlin's back. "Well, what are we waiting for?"

Henri nodded in acknowledgement and grabbed Laxus, while Panther Lily picked up Hisoka and Akane under either arm. The three exceeds then sprouted their wings and flew off towards the royal city.

* * *

Gajeel looked at the four-wheeler in dismay.

"Is something wrong?" his Edolas counterpart asked.

"Is this really the only way to get to the royal city?" Earth-Gajeel asked.

"If you want to get there quickly, then yes. What's the problem?"

Earth-Gajeel sighed. "I get horribly motion sick."

"I see." Edo-Gajeel looked at the vehicle, then back at Earth-Gajeel. "Well, the only other option is a long walk, I'm afraid."

"Well, I'm fine with it," Eallesander replied.

Alex nodded. "Just try not to throw up on the seat. We're sorry that we can't do anything about your condition."

Earth-Gajeel sighed. "Fine. I guess I should sit near the window, then."

Edo-Gajeel nodded. "That would make sense."

"Discomfort aside, I'm glad to know that Nashi and Emma are alright."

"Glad I could give you that reassurance."

"I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. If they can live as long as they have at each other's throats, an unfamiliar world would be a piece of cake for them."

Edo-Gajeel laughed. "You have a point."

* * *

Hughes looked up at the sky. "Any minute now…"

"What exactly are we waiting for?" asked Cana.

Just then, the group was hit by a pungent blast of wind. Everyone looked up to see a giant, blue, winged creature gliding towards them.

"That," replied Hughes.

The others could now see that there was a small woman sitting on the creature's back, along with Mystogan, Bickslow and… two Erza's? The creature landed in front of Hughes, and the five riders jumped down.

"Erza Scarlet, I didn't expect to see you here!" Hughes greeted.

Erza smiled. "It's nice to meet you again. How's reconstruction been going?"

"It was going alright until a few years ago. I'm sure those three told you the details."

Erza nodded. "Well, I'm glad we seem to be getting back together fairly quickly."

Lisanna's eye's widened in shock. "Erza… Knightwalker?"

"It's alright," Scarlet reassured her. "She's changed quite a bit from the fairy hunter she used to be."

Knightwalker nodded. "There was no excuse for what I did back then. I'm honestly surprised Jellal didn't have us all beheaded."

"Right…" Hughes changed the subject. "Anyway, we need to form a plan…"

* * *

The exceeds landed on the street and set down the humans they were carrying, earning a few stares from some nearby people who hadn't seen exceeds in twenty-eight years. The group looked around, then heard a noise, and turned to see a four-wheeler pulling up to them. Out stepped someone who was… Gajeel, but not the Gajeel they knew. He had curly hair, no beard, and fewer piercings. Next were two short, nearly identical people whose gender they couldn't discern, and finally, the Gajeel they knew sort of fell out, down on all fours and breathing heavily.

"I take it you're the Edolas version of Gajeel?" Hisoka inquired.

The curly-haired Gajeel nodded. "And that over there is Earth-Gajeel."

"Yeah, I know," Hisoka acknowledged. He looked over at Earth-Gajeel, who was now standing up and regaining his bearings. Then he looked down at the two unfamiliar people. "Who are these two?"

"Well, I know one of them's a member of Sabertooth from Earthland," Merlin replied. "As for the other one…"

"The other one's their Edolas counterpart," Earth-Gajeel replied. "As well as this guy's apprentice." He indicated Edo-Gajeel.

"So what brings you here?" asked Akane.

"We were on our way to meet up with Edolas' Fairy Tail," Earth-Gajeel explained. "Edo-me told us that's where Nashi and Emma have been staying. He's even met them."

"I see." Akane grinned in satisfaction. "Well, I guess we've found them, then."

Hisoka nodded. "Mission success!" Suddenly, he grunted in pain and raised a hand to his head as it throbbed a bit.

"You okay, kid?" Gajeel asked.

Hisoka nodded. "Akane and I have been getting headaches since we first arrived in Edolas, but we'll be fine."

"Yeah. It's nothing to worry about," Akane lied. "Anyway, let's go meet them!"

The group headed through the streets, and eventually turned to a building which seemed to be made from a giant hollowed-out plant. There was a banner hanging above it with the Fairy Tail guild symbol.

"Here it is," Edo-Gajeel introduced.

They went through the doors, Alex and Eallesander trailing behind. They looked around, and saw two Emma's, as well as William. Hisoka found it strange seeing her perfectly fine when he was used to seeing her crippled Earthland counterpart.

"Merlin…" William stared at Merlin, tears forming in her eyes. One of the versions of Emma had a similar reaction, while the other one just looked in surprise at everybody who had just shown up. Edo-Emma and William lunged at Merlin, hugging him tightly with tears streaming from their eyes, much to Merlin's surprise. Hisoka scanned the room to see that all of the Edolas Fairy Tail members looked like they wanted to do the same, and he could hear a sort of relieved joy buzzing around the room. In fact, Levy was now making her way towards them.

"Where's Nashi?" Hisoka asked.

Lucy looked at him for a second, then sighed. "She ran off without telling us anything a few hours ago."

Hisoka heard a spike of realization coming from someone's brain behind him, and he turned to see Earth-Gajeel with a worried look on his face. "What is it?" he asked.

"The main part of the rebellion is near the royal castle, right?" asked Earth-Gajeel.

"It is," replied Lucy.

Gajeel sighed in annoyance. "I think I know where she went."

* * *

Romeo and Asuka woke up to the sounds of people shouting and fighting.

"It sounds like people fighting," Romeo deduced.

"I agree," Asuka replied. "What is going on out there?"

They looked over to see Edo-Nashi entering the tent where they were still tied up.

"It seems we have an intruder," she explained. "Someone to join you."

Then they all jumped in surprise as they heard a familiar voice shouting something very strange.

"TELL ME WHERE I AM!"

A cone of flame blasted past the tent entrance, along with several people who had been thrown back by the flame. Then a girl walked past the entrance. She was holding Asuka's guns, the third one hanging with her keys. The dragonscale scarf and cherry blossom hair were unmistakable.

"I'm looking for me, so one of you had better inform me of my location!"

"Nashi?"

Earth-Nashi turned in response to Romeo's voice. Then her eyes narrowed on her Edolas counterpart, and she pointed one of the guns at her.

"So you're the one who's been soiling my reputation?" An evil grin crossed Earth-Nashi's face. "Well, soiling the reputation of any member of Fairy Tail is quite a serious matter!"

Edo-Nashi returned the grin, and drew her sword, as well as a device which, until now, had been hanging on her back, and now unfolded into a shield. "I take it you're my Earthland counterpart? Well, I can't have you running around Edolas unchecked."

"I'm fired up!" they simultaneously exclaimed.

* * *

 **Ah, the memories! Doesn't this remind you of Erza vs. Erza back in Hiro Mashima's Fairy Tail? Also, what do you think will happen with Freed, Sting and Rogue? I know I didn't touch on them much, but it seems they're in quite the predicament, not even being on Edolas. Anyway, hope you enjoyed!**


	11. Anima Arc - The Fallen Star

"Uh… hi?" Merlin looked around at William, Emma and Levy, who had finally released him. He was still able to see tears in their eyes.

"Sorry…" William apologized. "We know you're the Earthland version, but… it's still so good to see you again!"

"Uh…"

"I'm sorry," Akane interrupted. "Who are you?"

Merlin stared in bewilderment at Akane. He made a hand motion encompassing the Edolas versions of his family.

Akane nodded. "Yeah, I'm asking who those people are."

"Um… are you blind?"

Akane tilted his head in confusion.

"Akane doesn't recognize faces the same way we do," Hisoka explained, "which, admittedly, makes him terrible at telling whether two people are related, but he can easily tell the difference between identical twins, or, say, Edolas counterparts, and disguise magic doesn't work on him."

Akane nodded. "In fact, someone would have to tell me that the disguise was there in order for me to notice. So who are those three?"

"They're the Edolas counterparts of Emma, William and Levy." Hisoka pointed at each one respectively. "Or at least, I'm assuming that's Edo-Emma, since you didn't recognize her."

"Yeah, that's Earth-Emma over there." Akane pointed out the other Emma who was now approaching them.

"It's good to see you again," Earth-Emma greeted. She made her way through the others and hugged Merlin. "I was not expecting anyone to follow us through the Anima."

Merlin laughed. "Well, Henri, Hisoka, Thomas and Akane flew in after you. I went back to Magnolia to seek extra help."

"I see." Earth-Emma turned to the others. "Well, I'm afraid you're a bit late if you want to make absolutely certain that Nashi's alright."

Earth-Gajeel nodded. "If my knowledge of Nashi's personality and temperament is accurate, she probably went to attack the rebellion."

"It gets worse," Earth-Emma added.

"I take it you're talking about your friend's Edolas counterpart?" Edo-Gajeel guessed.

Earth-Emma nodded and looked back at Hisoka and Akane. "Apparently, in Edolas, Nashi is the leader of a rebellion against the crown. I'm guessing Earth-Nashi went specifically to fight Edo-Nashi."

Hisoka facepalmed in disappointment. "Of course she would do that." He grunted in pain and clutched his chest as his heartbeat got irregular. "I'm going after her." He turned and headed out the door.

"Hisoka, wait!" Akane extended an arm at Hisoka, but Hisoka ignored him and continued on his way. "Kuso! Why does he always jump into a situation without thinking?"

"Nashi's a bad influence on him," Earth-Emma joked. "He's starting to imitate her mannerisms."

Akane glared at Earth-Emma. "This is no time for jokes! We have to figure something out."

"I can go after them," Eallesander suggested.

Earth-Emma noticed Eallesander for the first time, and tilted her head in confusion. "What good will that do?"

"I can still use my powers in Edolas," Eallesander replied. "I could go in and pull them out of that situation."

"What powers, exactly?" asked Earth-Emma.

"Flying, for one thing. I can fly in and carry them back here. Also…" They lifted up a hand, and the air around their hand began to turn to fog. Everyone could feel the heat leaving the room as the air itself around Eallesander's hand condensed into liquid nitrogen, which, as it spilled towards the floor, boiled off into gaseous form, creating a thick fog that billowed down to the floor and covered everything it touched with a light dusting of frost. Then, heat radiated from Eallesander's hand and melted the frost. "…I can fight if I have to."

"You can use magic?" Emma asked incredulously.

"No."

"B-But y-you just…"

"That wasn't magic," Eallesander interrupted. "Now, please don't ask questions. I can mess with temperature and I can fly. I think I should go and rescue them."

Gajeel nodded. "I think that would be a wise choice. But don't fight any more than you have to."

Eallesander nodded. "I wasn't planning to." A pair of black, demonic wings sprouted from their back, and they turned and flew through the doors with blinding speed.

 _Not magic, huh?_ Emma thought to herself. _Interesting._

* * *

Elkhart woke up and stretched. Then he crawled out of his sleeping bag and put on his winter clothes. He climbed out of the tent, then got a few pieces of beef jerky out of his supplies and started eating. He looked over at the lacrima.

 _I wonder if this has something to do with the random Anima,_ he wondered. He pondered a bit as he swallowed the rest of the jerky. _Maybe it does, maybe it doesn't…_ He stood up, then made his way toward the lacrima. Then he requipped his magical scanning device and began to scan it. "Clearly, you are supplying the trees with magic." He then pointed the scanner at a few of the trees. "And the trees seem to have developed their own self-refilling magical reserves… which means that if I take you home to analyze, it shouldn't hurt the forest." The scanner in his hand dematerialized and was replaced with a small magic-sealing box. Elkhart opened the box, then carefully reached toward the lacrima and closed the box over it. The glow in the moss grew slightly dimmer, but the forest was otherwise unaffected. Then, instead of putting the box back in his requip inventory, he clipped it to his side, not knowing what effects the lacrima might have on his inventory. He then took down his tent and supplies and sent them to his inventory, and requipped a pair of purplish-white glowing lacrimas which were each roughly the size and shape of baguettes. He felt the magic from them connecting with his internal magic reserves. "Meteor!" Elkhart was engulfed in a white light, and he shot up into the sky.

The two Nashis stared at each other, grinning madly at what they were about to do.

"Earth-me, huh?" Edo-Nashi guessed. "Well, I can't have you running around pretending to be me."

"And I can't have you running around making me look bad." Flames shot out of the gun that Earth-Nashi had pointed at Edo-Nashi, but were quickly blocked by Edo-Nashi's shield.

"Flame-proof shield, huh?" inquired Earth-Nashi. "A bit of a challenge for me, then. I like it!"

"That's not all," replied Edo-Nashi. A strange liquid sprayed from the hilt of her sword onto the blade. Then they heard a click and the blade burst into flames. "Prepare to be toasted!" She swung her sword at Earth-Nashi, who barely managed to sidestep the blade. As Earth-Nashi stepped out of the way, she opened her mouth and sucked in some of the flames, and the blade embedded itself in the ground.

"Sorry, but fire can't hurt me. In fact, it's food for me!"

Edo-Nashi pulled her blade out of the ground. "Well, I guess that's a challenge for both of us!" She slashed at Earth-Nashi, managing to give her a rather large gash down her left arm, causing her to drop one of the guns. Earth-Nashi then spun around and kicked Edo-Nashi in the side, causing her to reel away in pain for a few feet. Nashi fired the gun that was still in her right hand, which was once again blocked by Edo-Nashi's shield. This time, however, Edo-Nashi was right next to the tent wall, and some of the deflected flames hit it, setting the entire tent ablaze.

"Why are we getting caught up in this?" Romeo groaned.

Asuka sighed. "Because neither of them have any self-restraint."

Earth-Nashi lunged at Edo-Nashi, who still had her shield up. She then pressed the gun against the shield and fired it again, this time creating a huge explosion that sent Romeo and Asuka, along with the pole they were tied to, flying into the air. They tumbled to the ground, and Romeo clutched his broken ankle in pain. Then he realized that his hands were free to do this. He looked over and saw that the rope used to tie him and Asuka to the pole had been broken, with the ends charred. He looked over and saw Asuka slowly getting up, then staring wide-eyed. Romeo looked where she was staring, and had a similar reaction as he saw the two Nashi's getting up.

Edo-Nashi was holding a large, deformed fragment of what had once been her shield. Romeo spotted the sword lying quite some distance away – too far for her to go grab it in the middle of the fight. Earth-Nashi was holding a cracked lacrima which was partially encased by a slowly cooling piece of red-hot metal.

"My gun!" Asuka shouted.

Earth-Nashi ignored her, and the two lunged at each other, exchanging blows and kicks.

Then something whizzed between the two Nashis' faces. They looked over and saw an arrow embedded in the ground next to Edo-Nashi's sword. They looked in the opposite direction to see Hisoka with a bow drawn, ready to fire another arrow. "That was a warning shot," Hisoka warned, and turned his attention to Edo-Nashi. "The next one goes for a major artery unless you back off!"

Edo-Nashi looked at Earth-Nashi, then back at Hisoka, then slowly backed away from her Earthland counterpart.

"Hisoka, what are you doing?!" Earth-Nashi demanded. "This is my fight!"

"Tell that to the armed civilians who are ready to shoot both of us!" Hisoka argued, lowering his bow. Earth-Nashi looked around, and sure enough, there were several people around them who had their bows and guns drawn.

Edo-Nashi looked angrily at her comrades. "Stand down!" she ordered. "This is our fight."

Hisoka once again aimed his bow at Edo-Nashi. "No, because this fight is over. I'm taking these three back with me." He used his elbow to point out Romeo and Asuka, then glanced over and saw that they had gone. He glared at Edo-Nashi. "What did you do to them?!"

Edo-Nashi shrugged and looked around. "None of these guys seem to have taken them. I guess they escaped." She seethed in annoyance at this.

Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through Hisoka's arm. He lost his grip on the bow, and the arrow flew off over everyone's heads. Hisoka sank to his knees, clutching his arm in pain.

Edo-Nashi took this chance to go for her sword. She dove over to it, picked it up, jumped back onto her feet and ran toward Earth-Nashi, bringing her blade down to attack.

"Nashi!" Hisoka shouted in fear.

Then, out of nowhere, a dark shape landed on the ground, and a black demonic hand reached up to block the blade. The part of the blade that touched the hand instantly melted, and a now partially deformed piece of the blade flew off and embedded itself in the ground. Hisoka watched as the hand then became more human, and he saw that it belonged to Eallesander.

"What are you doing here?" asked Hisoka.

"I came to get you out of here," Eallesander replied. They looked between the two Nashi's. "Which one is the Earthland version?"

"The one with the scarf," Hisoka panted. Then he doubled over in a fit of coughing. Blood came from his mouth and spattered on the ground in front of him.

Eallesander and Earth-Nashi ran over to Hisoka. "What's wrong?" Nashi asked, then looked in surprise as she saw something glittering on Hisoka's skin, which, come to think about it, was now a bit discolored.

"I'm fine," Hisoka insisted, using his sleeve to wipe blood off the corner of his mouth.

"No, you're not!" Nashi argued. "We're getting you back to the guild, and then we'll talk about it!"

Eallesander looked around to see the shooters once again aiming their weapons at the three of them. "I wouldn't do that if I were you." They stared at Eallesander, whose eyes changed to a demonic red. Then they lowered their weapons in fear. Eallesander looked back at Hisoka and Nashi, then picked them both up and flew them back to the guild. They landed, and Nashi supported Hisoka as they walked through the doors.

"Hisoka!" Akane stood up and headed over to them. "What were you thinking?!" Then he noticed Hisoka's condition. "You too, huh?"

Nashi looked at Akane and saw that his skin had the same glittery discoloration. "What's happening to you two?" she demanded.

"They told us they were fine," Merlin spoke up. "Did something happen?"

Nashi forcefully sat Hisoka down in a chair, despite his protests. "Hisoka was coughing up blood." Hisoka could hear concern and frustration in both her voice and her mind. "And you appear to be in a similar condition." She turned to Merlin. "No, they're not fine." She turned her attention back to Akane and Hisoka. "What the hell are you two hiding?!"

Akane looked at Hisoka, then back at Nashi. He didn't want to worry anyone, but at the same time, he wanted to help his friend, and something told him the others could help.

"Well?" Nashi demanded.

Akane sighed. "The truth is, Hisoka and I can only survive in Edolas for another three days. Our dragon souls are reacting weirdly to whatever effects this world has on magical abilities, and…"

"Hold it…" Nashi interrupted. "Your dragon souls? Are you saying you're also fourth generation?"

"Yeah," Akane confirmed. "Anyway, for one thing, we've both become physically weaker, and the magic inside our bodies has been crystalizing. That glittery texture you're seeing on our skin? Those are lacrima. And they're having an effect, too." He gave Hisoka a worried look, and Hisoka glared back at him. "So, yeah, it makes sense that he was coughing up blood, with lacrima forming in our lungs. It was stupid of us not to tell you guys sooner."

"And why didn't you?" Nashi glared at Hisoka.

Hisoka looked up at Nashi. In her face, he could only see anger, but coming from her mind came the sounds of fear and protectiveness. He sighed. "We didn't want people to worry."

"Well, it looks like that backfired on you, didn't it?" Nashi retorted. "You idiot…" tears formed in her eyes. "You… idiot…" She started crying, at which point Hisoka stood up. He was nearly a foot taller than Nashi, which made it easy for her to bury her head in his chest as he embraced her.

"I'm not going anywhere anytime soon," Hisoka reassured her. "I have too many things to live for. My foster family, my blood family…" He looked down at Nashi, who was still sniffing, then up at Merlin, Earth-Emma, Akane, Earth-Gajeel, Henri and Thomas. "…as well as my friends."

"Then take care of yourself, _baka_ ," Nashi complained, her voice muffled. "If you're going to survive…" she sniffed. "If you're going to survive, you need to not get so close to dying! You, too, Akane! Neither of you die, or I'm going to kill you!"

"Noted." Hisoka hugged Nashi a bit more tightly, and he noticed that, as unkempt as Nashi's hair was, it was also quite soft. He smiled. Then he noticed that Nashi was calming down quite quickly. He must have been wrong. The soothing effect was still there, even though it was a side effect of his healing magic, which he didn't have at the moment. Maybe side effects took a while to fade away. To be fair, he still had his dragonlike senses. "For the sake of my friends and my family, I'm not going anywhere."

"Mm…" Nashi continued to keep her face buried in his chest.

 _She's warm,_ Hisoka thought to himself.

* * *

"Bad news," Arleos announced. "It's going to take around three weeks to gather the resources to redesign the rocket for four people."

Freed looked over at Soren, who was sitting across from him on the couch. "Sorry."

"It's alright," Soren replied. "I'm perfectly fine with a launch window that isn't on my birthday, if it means I can help you guys."

Freed laughed. "You are quite different from your Earthland counterpart."

"How so?" Soren inquired.

"Well, let's just say that Earth-Soren doesn't seem to care much for other people. He terrorized quite a few areas before we managed to capture and arrest him."

Soren laughed. "Well, I guess that's where we're different."

"I'm glad you're okay with it, Soren," Arleos said.

"We can find something else to do for my birthday, though, right?"

"Indeed we can."

"And even if we couldn't," Soren added, "it wouldn't be worth it to leave these three stranded when they have somewhere they need to be."

"Thanks again," replied Sting who was resting his head on Rogue's lap. Rogue nodded in agreement.

"How long did you say the night was going to be?" asked Freed.

"Caerut rotates at the same rate that it orbits Qucrypso," replied Arleos. "That's ten days, which means five days of nighttime."

"How do you still have a 24-hour sleep cycle?" asked Rogue. "Shouldn't you have adjusted after thirty years?"

Arleos shook his head. "We make sure to turn the lights on and off based on Edolas' rotation."

"You shouldn't have clocks that accurate," Rogue argued. "With all the magic gone…"

"All the magic, you say?" inquired Arleos, holding up what looked like a timekeeping lacrima.

"How…?"

"You should have noticed the lights as well," Arleos added.

The three wizards looked up at the lights. Sure enough, they weren't candles or torches, and in fact they were too bright to be anything like that.

"I hadn't thought about that…" Sting realized.

"Of course you didn't," agreed Arleos. "That's because you've lived in a magic world for so long that it never even crosses your mind that some of your main conveniences are magic-powered, mostly because you don't really pay much mind to those conveniences at all."

"But how?" asked Freed. "All the magic was removed. Mystogan saw to that."

"From Edolas, yes," Arleos acknowledged, sitting down between Freed and Soren. "However, the other moons are well out of the Anima machine's reach, and were therefore unaffected."

Freed gritted his teeth in anger. "So why did they try to steal Earthland's magic? There was this abundant supply of magic, right here, and yet they felt the need to kill people in order to obtain our magic?!"

"Because people can be stupid," Arleos replied. "Even good, smart people can do the stupidest, most evil of things. That's part of what it is to be human. I personally don't have the patience for human nature, which is why Mio and I moved where there were no other humans. I understand it, but I do not wish to live among it. Soren made the choice to cope with it. He wants to meet other people, which I can also understand, and allow."

Freed sighed.

"Anyway, I think dinner should be just about done cooking, and Mio should be nearly back from hunting. Come on."

* * *

William woke to the sound of footsteps. She slowly sat herself up, grunting in pain as her injuries reacted to the movement. She looked over to see Elkhart walking into the room.

"Well, look who's back," William huffed. "You know, the entire guild's been wondering where you went."

"Lacrima hunting," Elkhart simply put. "Also, I need your help with something. In fact, I need help from several people, you included. Would you mind if I carried you out to a table."

"I'm not the one you need to ask."

Elkhart looked up to the sound of someone clearing their throat and saw Porlyusica standing there. "Ah."

"You may, I suppose," Porlyusica replied.

"Actually, Porlyusica," Elkhart added, "I also need your help."

"With what?"

Elkhart picked up William from the bed, stumbling a bit as he was almost the same size as the dragonslayer. "Just come on and I'll show you." He carried William into the guild hall, Porlyusica following behind, and set her on a bench. He then sat down next to her, letting her lean against him. "Oi, Levy! Can you come over here?" Levy turned her head towards them and walked over to the table.

"What is it?" she asked. She looked at William. "And what does it have to do with us?"

"Hold on," Elkhart replied. "The others should be here any minute."

They waited a bit. Then a gush of air swept through the guild hall.

"That would be Christina."

"Christina? As in the Blue Pegasus ship?"

Elkhart nodded. "I called in a few friends from other guilds. Christina should be transporting them all."

As if on cue, several people floated down what looked like Ren's magic, among them Being Jura Neekis, Lyon Vastia, Hibiki Lates, and Rufus Lore, as well as Nero Fullbuster. It was weird seeing him in Magic Council uniform, since the last time William had seen him, he had only just been leaving Fairy Tail. They came in and sat down at the table.

"What is it?" Rufus asked. "I have no memory of a meeting like this."

Elkhart pulled out the magic-sealing box clipped to his side and held it over the table. He opened the box and the lacrima fell out. As soon as it hit the table, the wood began to look slightly newer. "This is no ordinary lacrima," he explained, looking around at the confused faces. "This has something to do with the random Anima that have been occurring lately. And it may be the key to ending them."

"So why did you call specifically on us?" asked Jura.

"I needed a team who's good at magical analysis," Elkhart replied. "Texts, forms of magic…" he looked over at Porlyusica. "Even if you don't possess magic of your own, but are good with analyzing things and working with magic, you would be of help. For one thing, we need records of the various magical properties of this lacrima. I know the Magic Council has access to records that we don't." He looked at Nero. "I know you don't have clearance to those records, but I'm sure you can convince the others at the council how important this is."

Nero nodded. "I'll do my best."

"And we'll need to be able to look at some more ancient magics…" He looked at Rufus, Hibiki and Porlyusica. "…which means ancient texts." He looked at Lyon, Jura, Levy and William. "I believe that if we all work together, we can solve this, and end the chaos in both Edolas and Earthland." Then he looked again at William, then back at Nero. "You don't suppose your friends at the council could lend an anti-motion sickness lacrima that can be fitted onto a wheelchair? This would involve quite a bit of moving around, and William won't be able to walk for another two weeks."

"Considering how important this is, I think I can make an arrangement," Nero replied. "That shouldn't be a problem."

"Good." Elkhart once again looked around the table. "So, what do you guys say?"

Rufus nodded. "I have no memory of a quest like this. It should be and interesting new experience. And I also would like to save both worlds."

"Until Gray gets back, I am the only one of Ur's disciples available to live up to her name," Lyon declared. "In the name of Ur, I will save Earthland and Edolas."

"Well, what can I say?" Hibiki asked rhetorically. "The world… no… two worlds are at stake. I'll do what I can to help."

"I believe I have already made it clear that I am participating in this," Nero stated. "I need not say any more."

"Gajeel and Merlin are doing their part in this mess," Levy reflected. "It's time that we do our part."

"Agreed," William replied, sitting up temporarily. "I have nothing else to add to that."

"I dislike humans," Porlyusica coldly stated. "However, that doesn't mean I want any of them suffering or dying unnecessarily. I will do what I can, even if it's not much."

"It's enough," Elkhart reassured her. "Otherwise I wouldn't have called you in here."

Porlyusica nodded.

Elkhart stood up, so that William now had to lean on her mother. "Well, I guess that settles it." His eyes scanned the group one last time. "Let us begin Operation Fallen Star!"

* * *

 **A bit of a strange name, I will admit, but it works. I hope Akane and Hisoka will be okay. And, as always, hope you enjoyed!**


	12. Anima Arc - Reunion

"You know, Hisoka, I'm personally quite disappointed in you."

Hisoka nodded. "Yeah, Merlin. I heard it all from Nashi."

"Not all of it," Merlin interjected. "I have just a bit to add to what she said."

Hisoka leaned forward on the table, supporting himself with his elbows. "I'm listening."

"Again, I'm quite disappointed in you," Merlin began. "When I was hurting myself over what happened to Will, and insisting that I was fine, you stepped in and took care of me. And now this? Honestly, if you're going to protect other people like that, you've got to take better care of yourself."

Hisoka smiled and nodded. "I will survive this, and I promise I will take better care of myself."

"You'd better."

Hisoka stood up, then looked at his hand. _I wonder if there's a way to take advantage of these lacrima. After all, they are full of magic, even if I can't directly use them at will._ Suddenly, he broke off into another fit of coughing. Merlin reacted quickly by handing him a piece of fabric.

"You know, Akane also coughed up blood about half an hour ago."

"I figured he would," replied Hisoka. "He may be resilient, but he is dying from the same thing that I am."

They sat in silence for a bit, listening to the others chattering.

"I heard that in this world, you died a while back," Hisoka mentioned, changing the subject.

Merlin nodded. "It's a bit weird, imagining myself being dead, but it explains their reaction to first seeing me." He pointed a casual thumb towards the Edolas versions of Emma, Levy and William. "I feel a bit bad for them, since I can't stay here forever."

Hisoka nodded. "Both my parents live here, and I can't even survive two weeks in this world. Same with Akane."

"Oh, yeah. I've been meaning to ask about that. What's the deal with your parents again?"

"Well, as it turns out, Laxus' brother that he apparently never told anyone about, who one day found himself in Edolas, is my dad, while my mom is native to Edolas. And when I was about three, one of the first of the random Anima sent both me and Akane to Earthland."

"Right. And what about Akane's parents?" Merlin asked.

Hisoka sighed. "He'll tell you when he's ready. He's still trying to process it himself, actually."

Merlin nodded. "I understand. He has good reason to be nervous about something like that."

Hisoka turned to the sound of footsteps, and saw Asuka entering the guild hall, supporting a limping Romeo.

"What happened to you guys?" asked Merlin.

"More importantly," added Hisoka, "why did you run off like that?"

Merlin looked at Hisoka, confused.

"They were there when I went after Nashi," Hisoka explained. "I was going to rescue them, too, but they disappeared on me."

"Yeah, sorry about that," Asuka apologized. "You two looked like you could hold your own for a bit, and we needed to find someone who could help Romeo. And it looks like we've found a good place to stay, anyway."

Merlin nodded. "What happened, anyway?"

"Back when we first came to Edolas, Asuka and I landed on top of a castle spire," Romeo explained as Asuka helped him into a chair. "We jumped down using Asuka's guns as propulsion to soften the fall, and I broke my ankle in the landing. Then we were captured by Edo-Nashi, who, despite thinking we were the enemy, should have at least had the courtesy to provide some sort of splint." He seethed in annoyance as he remembered Nashi using his ankle as a form of torture. "In fact, she did pretty much the opposite."

"And _someone_ …" Asuka glared at Nashi, who was now also watching, as was everyone in the room. " _Someone_ destroyed one of my guns, which are my only means of using magic in this world!"

"I made it so you could escape," Nashi retorted. "You're welcome."

Asuka continued to glare at Nashi for a second, then turned her attention back to everyone. "Anyway, now we're here. Maybe someone could help Romeo with his ankle?"

"I can do that," Levy volunteered.

"You're a mechanic," Lucy replied.

Levy glared at Lucy. "And in working with heavy machinery, I've dealt with my fair share of broken bones. I'll deal with Romeo."

Lucy sighed. She may still dislike Levy, but over the years, they had become more cool-minded and less interested in fighting. She realized this was a fair point. "Fine. You help Romeo."

Hisoka and Merlin watched this, then got back to their conversation. "Anyway," Merlin continued, reverting the subject, "How are we supposed to get you guys back to Earthland within three days when we have no idea where Mystogan is?"

"I don't know," Hisoka admitted, "but we have to believe in him."

* * *

"Oi, Invel-san!"

Invel turned from the books he was sorting to see Nero approaching him. "What is it?" he asked.

"I need to ask a favor of you," Nero explained. "You have clearance to access ancient records in the council archives, right?"

Invel nodded. "However, if you're asking me to give you that clearance, the answer is no."

Nero sighed. "Look, I know there are all these protocols and all that, but this is a matter of great importance."

"It is of great importance that we keep those records hidden," Invel explained. "Those ancient magics could be quite dangerous if released to the world. Even I only use my magic when absolutely necessary. Surely your father's told you how his battle against me went."

"It is my understanding that he won."

"By employing devilslayer magic, which is also quite dangerous. Also, before he did that, I was able to bring quite a vast area to absolute zero. Honestly, it's a good thing he defeated me that day. Who knows what I would have done?"

"I understand that these magics can be risky," Nero acknowledged. "However, this involves the fate of the entire world – two entire worlds, in fact."

"And what might that be?"

"Elkhart may have found a way to put an end the random Anima that have been occurring lately."

Invel's eyes widened briefly. Then he reasserted himself and pushed his glasses up his nose. "I'm listening."

"You know that continent that the Blue Steel Twins were investigating?"

Invel nodded. "I was in charge of filing their report."

"Then you are also aware of the lacrima that Merlin used to save William's life?"

"Well, technically, it was the moss that was absorbing magic from the lacrima, but yes."

"Well, Elkhart paid a visit to the continent, and he kind of brought it home with him."

Invel's eyes widened. Then he smacked a hand against his forehead. "That idiot! What was he thinking?"

"Well, according to him, he scanned it first to make sure it was safe. The forest was apparently unharmed by its removal, due to the trees now having their own magical reserves."

"Well, at least he's not a complete idiot. But he still shouldn't be messing with this sort of thing."

"We have reason to believe that it can be used to put an end to the random Anima," Nero protested. "We just need to analyze it more."

Invel sighed. "Well, I still can't just give you clearance. Therefore, in order to access those records, you would have to make me a part of this."

Nero smiled. "Deal."

"Any other favors?" Invel asked.

"Oh, yeah," Nero remembered. "Can we spare an anti-motion sickness lacrima? One that can be installed on a wheelchair?"

* * *

"So, Mirajane, you can't use magic?" Scarlet inquired.

Mira shook her head.

Scarlet looked at Mystogan, then at Cana. "I guess that means only you two are able to use magic, as well as Bickslow? Out of those of us who are here, that is."

"Indeed," replied Cana.

"As well as Freed, Asuka and Romeo if we can find them."

"Laxus, too," Mystogan added.

"Laxus?"

Mystogan pointed up at the ringed gas giant in the sky. "The way a wizard's inability to use magic in this world works is that that planet emits a special kind of magical radiation," he explained. "However, it only does this to your internal magic supply, whereas Laxus gets his dragonslayer magic from a lacrima in his body, so he has a limited amount of that which he can use. Basically, the radiation will try to crystalize magic that isn't in lacrima form."

"I see," replied Cana. "Intriguing."

"Not only that," Mystogan added, "but I have reason to believe that your friend Hisoka's life is in danger from that same radiation."

"How so?" asked Cana.

"You mentioned that he's a fourth generation dragonslayer, right? Meaning his soul was fused with that of a dragon."

Scarlet nodded.

"The magic keeping the human and dragon souls in his body stable would also be crystalizing from the same radiation. How long did you say those four have been here?"

"When Merlin came in telling us what had happened, it had been three days according to him, and it was another day before we came over. That means it's been a week."

"Then he hasn't got much time," Mystogan replied. "We have to find him, and fast!"

"Sugar Boy and I saw a flash of light that looked like Anima above the royal city a week ago," Hughes mentioned. "We were too busy fleeing to investigate it, but that may have been them."

"Speaking of which, where is Sugar Boy?" Mystogan asked. "He should be with you."

"We split up," replied Hughes. "I'm not certain where he is."

"I see. Well, we can't wait for him to arrive. We have to find Hisoka! Let's go!" He jumped onto the legion. The others exchanged glances, then climbed on. "Coco, he can hold this many people, right?"

"He'll be a bit slow," Coco replied, "but I believe Legy-pyon can do it."

"How slow?"

"I'd give it two days to get to the royal city."

Mystogan gritted his teeth in frustration. "What if we left some people here?"

"He could get there in a day and a half unloaded."

"Well, either way, there's a chance Hisoka will already be dead by then. And we need to be able to fight in case we get interrupted by some rebels, so we can't leave very many people behind. Come on."

The others exchanged glances, then climbed onto the legion.

* * *

The flying ship lowered itself to the ground, and three people jumped out. The shortest one turned and waved to the ship. "Thanks for the lift!" She then turned to the building they had been looking for. "Hisoka was right. It is huge." They headed towards the Vistarion library.

"I wonder if they'll let me use my archive," Hibiki wondered. "You said they have anti-magic rune barriers, but I think it would be useful."

"I'm afraid not," Levy replied. "In fact, I don't think Rufus' memorizing ability will work in there."

"It will still work," Rufus corrected. "My incredible memory is a side effect of my magic, but it's still there if my ability to use magic is suppressed."

Levy nodded in understanding. "Well, at least we have that."

The three continued into the library, and stopped at the front desk. Levy cleared her throat.

The librarian looked up. "Can I help you?" he asked.

"We need a pass," Levy requested. "There are certain obscure magics we need to research."

The librarian pushed his glasses up his nose. "And what might this be?" he asked.

"It's sort of Anima-related," Levy explained. "And there are a bunch of unfamiliar magics as well, and some known ancient magics."

The librarian stroked his chin, deep in thought. "Well, there are books on ancient magics on floors minus twenty through minus twelve, as well as references to Anima scattered throughout the library. I'm not sure how to help you beyond that."

"'Minus'?"

"The underground levels," the librarian explained.

"There are underground levels?"

"Of course. Did you really think what you saw from outside was big enough to contain every book ever written?"

Levy realized the logic in that.

"You said minus twenty through minus twelve, right?" asked Hibiki.

The librarian nodded.

"So that's nine floors."

"That would be correct."

"I know you have anti-magic barriers, but is there a chance I could connect my archive magic to the library so that I can use it to access information more quickly? We're in a bit of a hurry."

The librarian briefly thought about this. "Well, we can try, but there are certain protections that I cannot take down, so there's a good chance that I won't be able to do anything."

Hibiki nodded. "Thanks." He turned to Levy and Rufus. "You two can go on without me. I'll catch up."

* * *

Invel took the communications lacrima and placed it on top of the data storage lacrima. "Alright," he confirmed to Elkhart, who was on the other end of the line. "Begin transmission."

Elkhart took his scanner and held it between the fallen star and the communications lacrima, then activated it. The data lacrima on Invel's end began glowing as magical data poured into it. Then Elkhart finished, and the scanner in his hand dematerialized. "Done."

Invel picked up the data storage lacrima. "I should be able to find similar data based on this."

"Right," Elkhart replied. "And by the way, thanks for the anti-motion sickness lacrima."

Invel nodded, then headed down the steps into the archives.

Elkhart placed the mystery lacrima, which, for the purpose of the operation, had been dubbed "the fallen star," back in its box, then headed down to the guild library. "Anything?" he asked.

William and Porlyusica turned towards them. William pushed her wheelchair over to him as he approached. "Well, we did find one thing," William replied.

Porlyusica got down from the ladder and approached them. "You said there was a crater around where you first found that lacrima?"

"It was covered by a thick forest," Elkhart replied, "but yes, I believe that was the shape of the terrain."

"I see," Porlyusica acknowledged. "Well, I believe that Lacrima may have come from Edolas."

"Not through the Anima, though," William added. "It drifted here through interstellar space over the course of several thousand years. Then it collided with Earthland seven years ago, when the random Anima first started."

"Weird," Elkhart commented. "I wonder why Akane didn't mention that, since I'm guessing that's what spawned the fear barrier. Surely he would have made a connection."

William shook her head. "That barrier's been around for centuries, though I think the fallen star may have strengthened it. Speaking of which…" she eyed Elkhart suspiciously. "…how were you unaffected by the barrier?"

Elkhart shrugged. "Maybe because I'm too busy dealing with my own personal fears. I mean, magic is affected by emotions, so maybe that protected me."

"What fears?"

Elkhart glared defensively at William. Then his expression softened as he realized she was not trying to be intrusive. "Nothing I'm willing to share with you right now," he simply put. "I'm actually still trying to figure it out myself."

"I see. Well, anyway, that's something we've found. We deduced how long it had been here due to our belief that it may have triggered the random Anima."

Elkhart nodded. "It makes sense. It has much stronger traces of other magics we've found in the random Anima. Can I see the book where you found that?"

Porlyusica pointed to a red, jacketless book sitting on one of the tables. Elkhart walked over, picked it up, and looked through it. His eyes widened, and he held it up.

"This…" he began, and stumbled, looking for words. "This is a book on how all of the magic in Edolas works! And it looks like it's centuries old. How did it end up here?!"

Porlyusica went over to him. "It didn't come from the guild library," she explained. "I brought it over from my house. It's the oldest book I own. I had it with me when I first ended up in Earthland."

"Incredible…" Elkhart sifted through the pages again. "This may be exactly what we need. I mean, the others should keep searching, just in case, but…" he looked through it. "Amazing…" he trailed off as he scanned each page. "So many unfamiliar concepts. I can't wait to read them all. I could even make an invention or two with these concepts!"

"But right now, we should be focusing on the matter at hand," Porlyusica asserted. "When we finish this operation that _you_ started, I'll let you look through it all you like."

Elkhart's eyes glinted with excitement, and he smiled warmly. "Thanks!" Then he snapped back to attention. "Right, so…" He found the pages that William and Porlyusica had been looking through. "Right. So… it looks like the crystal is a fragment of one of two moons which used to orbit… Qucrypso?"

"The gas giant that Edolas orbits," Porlyusica explained. "But we don't have time to read about it. I can explain as needed."

"Right. So, it looks like one of these moons was in a retrograde orbit around Qucrypso, and the two eventually collided. It looks like one of the moons had a curse shield that blocked out this anti-magic radiation from Qucrypso. This is the same radiation that prevents Ethernanos from forming and crystalizes magic on Edolas. The moon in the retrograde orbit was interesting, as its entire surface was coated with solid lacrima. So when the two crashed into each other several thousand years ago, it sent out shards of lacrima with traces of magic that had a bit of curse mixed in – not enough to do anything on its own, but detectable. The magical/cursed explosion created by the collision launched these shards at incredible speeds, sending them out to the stars. So I guess this is one of those shards?"

"That would seem to be the case, yes," Porlyusica replied.

"What if we threw the crystal into, say, a giant source of anti-magic radiation?"

"Where did that idea come from?"

"Random thought. To be fair, a lot of my inventions, as well as my relativity magic were created by random thoughts, so they can actually be useful." Elkhart sifted through the pages a bit more. His eyes widened. "Shit…"

"What?" asked William.

"Hisoka's in danger. It looks like all free-floating magic gets crystalized by this radiation, which would include soul magic. And since Hisoka's a fourth generation dragonslayer, there's plenty of that in his body."

William's eyes widened in fear. "That mean's Akane is also…"

"What do you mean?" asked Elkhart.

"He didn't mention it to the guild," William explained, "but he did tell me and Merlin on the way home from the northwest continent. Akane's also fourth generation."

"I see…" Merlin looked down at the pages. "It doesn't say anything about the rate, and I'm not sure how much magic power is used to fuse human and dragon souls, so I have no idea how much time they have, or whether they're even still alive."

A tear ran down William's left cheek, and she wiped it away. "They'd better both still be alive, and they'd better both get back safely, or I'm going to kill them."

"I trust that they will," Elkhart reassured her. "Anyway, as for my idea about throwing the fallen star into Qucrypso, I think I may be onto something…" he turned back to the book.

* * *

The legion pulled in and landed in front of the Fairy Tail guild hall, and ten people jumped off onto the ground. Then the legion turned and flew off on its own.

"What if we need it back?" asked Elfman.

Coco pulled out what looked sort of like a dog whistle, but slightly different. "I can call him. He's trained to respond to this."

They continued into the guild hall.

"Where's Hisoka?" Mystogan demanded.

"Here," a raspy voice replied. Mystogan turned, and his eyes widened at the sight of him.

"I take it you're Hisoka?"

The young man nodded. His skin was sort of greenish, and looked like it had been scraped down with glittery sandpaper. "Well, at least you're still alive." Then he noticed the redhead sitting beside Hisoka, who was in a similar condition. "Wait, another one?"

Akane nodded. "I'm Akane, by the way."

"So, you're also a fourth generation dragonslayer?"

"What gave it away?"

"Maybe the fact that you're in the same condition he is?" Mystogan sarcastically replied. "Well, neither of you have very long left to live."

"Oh, gee! How did you guess?" Hisoka wondered mockingly. "Of course we don't have long left to live! We've been in Edolas for a week and a half, and it's kind of leaving its mark."

Mystogan sighed. "Honestly, I'm surprised you still have the energy left for sarcasm. Based on your current appearance, it looks like you have about a day left to live."

Akane nodded. "That was Hisoka's estimate."

"So we need to get you two back to Earthland, and fast! I can do it right now. I just need to go outside to draw the magic circle…"

"Wait!" Lucy shouted. Everyone fell silent. They could hear the sound of footsteps outside. Earth-Emma slowly ventured over to the doorway and peeked outside. Then she quickly jumped back inside.

"Get down!" she shouted, right before an explosion ripped the guild hall apart, sending rubble flying everywhere. Luckily, Nashi quickly devoured the flames, so nobody was badly injured. As the dust settled, everyone found that they were surrounded by rebels.

"Yeah, we saw that legion," one of them commented, pulling up a pair of binoculars. "And we were able to see that you were on it." He looked over at Mystogan. "Oh, and it looks like you don't really need magic to be powerful. That explosion was one hundred percent magic-free."

"Maybe it's time Edolas got its magic back," Mystogan seethed.

"Oh? And so you got Edolas' magic back, but decided to keep it for yourself?" Edo-Nashi stepped forward.

"I'm telling you, those Anima aren't us!" Mystogan exclaimed.

"Sure they aren't." Edo-Nashi blew them off. "And you totally don't have multiple magic staves strapped to your back."

"I hardly see how that's the point. I used these to get to Earthland and seek help dealing with your stupidity."

"By crushing us? With magic?"

Mystogan sighed in annoyance. "Getting some people over from Earthland to explain things from their side."

"Hasn't this gone on long enough?!" William stormed over to Edo-Nashi. "Ever since the first of the Anima occurred seven years ago, you were convinced that they were attacks from the king, based on what? Anima has been a thing for much longer than King Jellal's been around, and what in the worlds was he attacking you _for_? You know what this is?! A bloody conspiracy! Someone made some baseless claims, and a bunch of you blew it out of proportion, and a bunch of people have died as a result of your stupidity…" Tears welled in her eyes. "…including my brother…"

"You really think shouting about conspiracies and crying is going to convince me of anything?" Edo-Nashi raised her sword, which appeared to have been repaired. The blade burst into flame, and swung towards William…

Suddenly, Edo-Nashi was hit in the face by an iron pole, and the sword clattered to the ground. The pole then retracted to Merlin's hand, and he stared at his hand incredulously.

"I… can use… magic?" He looked around at the shocked expressions, which seemed to confirm what had just happened. "I see…" He tossed the magical focus Elkhart had given him over to Earth-Nashi. "It looks like I won't be needing this. It works the same way as Asuka's guns. Tetsuryuuken!" He raised an arm, which morphed into a blade with deadly spinning teeth.

"Don't attack the leader," Earth-Nashi requested, activating the fiery blade of the focus weapon. "She's mine."

"So I guess we're fighting now?" Bickslow guessed. "Well, in that case, Baryon Formation!" His dolls circled into a ring, preparing to fire. Mystogan pulled out a staff, and Cana readied her cards. Eallesander remained in the same position, but was secretly ready to make their move at a moment's notice.

"We meet again, me!" Earth-Nashi greeted her counterpart.

"Let's settle this once and for all," Edo-Nashi replied.

* * *

 **Well, it seems things have gotten a bit chaotic. I hope it still makes for a good story. In other words, hope you enjoyed!**


	13. Anima Arc - The Last King

"We can't tell Levy, Rufus or Hibiki," Elkhart explained. "That library blocks out all magic, including communications lacrima."

"What about Invel and Nero?" William asked.

"I should be able to reach Nero, who should in turn be able to reach Invel." Elkhart picked up the box with the fallen star inside. "As for the others, the only thing we can really do at the moment is leave them in the dark."

"You realize every bit of this plan qualifies you as crazy?"

"Right." Elkhart rolled his eyes. Admittedly, the plan was a bit crazy, and it sort of depended on his magic lingering long enough for him to use it, and him having a good enough aim – well, it was a gas giant; aiming shouldn't be a problem. He pulled up the interface for his archive magic, and started typing in a code.

"What is that?" asked William.

"The fallen star is what's been causing all the Anima lately," Elkhart explained. "I'm going to try telling the lacrima to summon one right here." He looked over at William. "I can't program the Anima itself, though, so as a dragonslayer, you'll be left behind."

"I understand," replied William. "Wait… you're going to take the entire guild with you?!"

"Almost definitely," Elkhart confirmed. "With an artificial Anima, you can control the size, but a natural Anima like this one is the only kind that will allow me to use magic momentarily after I arrive, and throwing this thing into Edolas's host planet will require my magic."

William's eyes narrowed in exasperation. "Well, I thought I was joking when I called you crazy. Now I'm not so certain."

"It's not like anyone will get hurt. It'll be fine."

"I hope you're right."

* * *

Eallesander darted into the crowd, and a path of ice traced their rapid motion through the ranks, shooting up ice spikes at the edges. Merlin followed, charging with his iron blade. Earth-Nashi lunged directly at Edo-Nashi, and flame blade clashed with flaming blade. The two Erza's each incapacitated a multitude of people, needing no weapons or magic. The Earthland versions of Gajeel and Emma took advantage of their iron skeletons, crashing through ranks like they were dominoes.

"Rairyuu no Tekken!" Laxus' fist charged with lightning, and he plowed through several attackers.

"Must you be this persistent?" inquired Earth-Nashi. "You're so convinced of what you've been told that you won't listen to reason." Her flame blade went up to meet Edo-Nashi's blade. "I mean, try actually considering what the king is saying."

"It's a bit late for that," Edo-Nashi retorted. "We're kind of in the heat of battle!" She went for an underhand swing, which Nashi responded to by leaping back.

"And whose fault is that?!" demanded Earth-Nashi. "Not only did you just attack an innocent, unarmed person. You've been leading this stupid rebellion for, what, seven years?"

"And what of it?"

Earth-Nashi swung at Edo-Nashi, and Edo-Nashi dodged. "Is something some random person said worth all of this?!" She stepped back and gestured to the rebels surrounding Fairy Tail.

Edo-Nashi briefly thought about this. There was something reasonable about what her Earthland counterpart had just said. Then her emotions kicked in and she brushed the thought aside. "You're wrong!" She lunged at Earth-Nashi.

"Am I?" Earth-Nashi persisted, sidestepping the attack. "I may not know much about other people's minds – that's Hisoka's specialty – but I know that people don't like their beliefs being debunked. That's how you stuck to this conspiracy for so long. That's why you're resisting my arguments now!"

Edo-Nashi swung again. This time an arm went up and blocked it. Earth-Nashi looked and was surprised to see Earth-Emma coming to her aid.

"You? This is my fight!" Earth-Nashi complained.

"Nope," Emma argued. "Any fight against someone with your face is my fight. And while you may both seriously get on my nerves, one of you is a rival while the other's an enemy." She jumped back from the parry, and Nashi could see blood dripping from the spot where the blade had hit.

"Still, I'm the one who's armed and you just cut yourself," Earth-Nashi reasoned.

"I have an iron skeleton, but I can still get cut," Emma explained. "I just need to make sure I don't lose too much blood."

Earth-Nashi sighed. "Well, I guess just this once, we're a team."

Emma nodded. "Just this once."

Hisoka looked around at the people fighting, then over at Akane. They were barely in any condition to stand, let alone fight. He stood up.

"Hisoka, what are you doing?!" Akane exclaimed. "If you fight, you could die within minutes. Don't you remember the promise we made to our guildmates?"

"I know," Hisoka replied. "And what I'm about to do could very well kill me. However, I can't just stand by and do nothing. I did that seven years ago, and it didn't end well for anyone." He closed his eyes. "Flutlogia. I need your help. I give you permission to use my body, as long as you fight for my friends."

"Wha…?" Akane shielded his eyes as Hisoka's body flashed bluish-green. Then he looked to see that he had gained a more draconic appearance, akin to when he had attacked Acnologia. This time, the blue scales covered half his face, and one of his eyes changed to a slit-shaped pupil and sclera the same color as the iris. The familiar fin-like wings sprouted from his back. He flew up. "Kawatatsu no Houkou!" His breath weapon blasted from his mouth, knocking out a large number of people. "Kawatatsu no Kagizume!" He slashed his foot through the ranks, taking out even more people.

"What just happened here?" William asked, crawling over to Akane.

"It would appear Hisoka has allowed his dragon to possess him," Akane replied. "That's going to kill him a lot more quickly than if he just lies low."

Earth-Emma and the two Nashi's stared incredulously at the dragonoid that was now plowing through the rebels like bowling pins.

"Is that… Earthland magic?" Edo-Nashi asked.

"That," Nashi replied, her teeth gritting in anger, "is Hisoka doing something stupid!" She passed the elemental focus to Emma. "I need to deal with this idiot. You deal with Edo-me!" She ran over to Hisoka, who was punching aside rebels as he wandered through the ranks. She could see that it was having a visible effect on him, despite the ease with which he seemed to be doing it. "Hisoka, stop!"

Hisoka turned his head towards Nashi. "Hisoka gave me permission to control his body in exchange for power." His voice was different – more draconic.

Nashi was confused for a moment. Then her eyes widened as she realized what was going on. "Flutlogia?"

"Not bad," Flutlogia mused. "He wanted the power to help you, so I'm giving him that power."

"At what cost?" demanded Nashi. "He's hardly able to survive as it is. And possessing him in a way that uses more energy, and more magic, for that matter, isn't helping. You could kill him!"

Flutlogia looked down, thinking. "True. If he dies here, then we will not be able to complete our objective."

"Objective?"

"He will tell you himself if he is comfortable with you knowing," Flutlogia explained. Then Hisoka's features returned to normal – well, human, but is skin was still covered in micro-lacrima. Hisoka collapsed, and Nashi quickly caught him in her arms.

"Hisoka, are you alright?!" Nashi asked frantically. He didn't respond. Nashi laid him down on the ground and checked for a heartbeat. She sighed in relief. "You'd better make it back to Earthland," she asserted.

Akane stumbled over to them. "Is he still alive?"

Nashi nodded. "But I don't know for how much longer. His heartbeat is really weak. Huh?" She looked up in response to a strange sound, and saw a white glow in the sky, much larger and softer than the sun. "What's that?"

Akane looked up. His eyes widened. "Out of the way!" He slung Hisoka over his shoulder, then grabbed Nashi's hand and dragged her out of the way. "Everyone, move!" The others looked at him, then up at the sky, and ran for cover.

A beam of white energy shot to the ground, creating a shockwave that knocked over everyone who was still standing up. Then the light cleared, and Akane and Nashi both stared in shock at what appeared before them.

"You've got to be kidding me…" Akane began.

Before them stood the Earthland Fairy Tail guild hall.

Elkhart burst out through the doors. He appeared in shades of blue as he walked towards them. Then, as he passed them and walked away, it shifted over to red. Then he changed back to normal colors as he halted. He pulled out a crystal, and Akane's eyes widened as he recognized it.

Elkhart whispered something, then pulled his arm back, the view becoming distorted as his arm moved. He then brought it forward, distorting his arm even further, and threw it. As his arm stopped moving, it went to normal, and whatever magic he was using was dispelled. The crystal shot up into the sky with enough speed to basically render it invisible. About seven seconds passed, and Akane could see a sort of blossom of flame on the surface of the gas giant. Everyone watched it in awe. Then the giant briefly glowed, and a wave of energy emanated from it, engulfing Edolas and then vanishing.

"What just happened?" asked Edo-Nashi, her eyes wide with shock and awe.

Mystogan looked up at Qucrypso as the explosion settled and the gas giant's atmosphere gained a pattern reminiscent of the collision that had just occurred. Then he looked around at everyone. "Listen! I don't know what that was, but what's more important is this fight." He made a gesture indicating everyone in the area. "This rebellion has gone on long enough, and it needs to just stop. I'll even renounce the crown if…" He broke off as blood spattered from his mouth. His eyes widened, and he fell forward to the ground, unmoving. Everyone stared in surprise at the knife sticking out of the back of his neck.

Edo-Nashi looked around, trying to locate the attacker, but everyone else seemed to be just as shocked as she was. "Whoever that was," she said, "he was about to renounce the crown, which would have been fine with me. Haven't enough lives been lost?!"

Lucy ran over to Mystogan, kneeling next to him. Tears filled her eyes. "Oi, Jellal! You can't die now! I…" she broke off into sobs. "I…" She looked around, trying to spot the attacker, but was just as lucky as Edo-Nashi.

Elkhart looked down from his handiwork and realized what was happening. "What the hell is going on?" He looked down at Mystogan's body, then back up at everyone else.

"It would appear the king has been murdered," replied Edo-Nashi. "This has gone too far." She dropped her sword. "Everyone, drop your weapons!"

Everyone looked at each other, then set their weapons down.

Akane watched this, then his vision tunneled, and his senses became distorted. _Crap,_ he thought as his world faded to black.

* * *

"What was that?" Sting asked incredulously.

"I honestly have no idea," Soren replied.

"Same here," Arleos chimed in. "I know many things about magic, but that was unfamiliar to me."

"It was like this sort of… wave of energy." Rogue looked at the great spot that had formed on Qucrypso.

* * *

Gajeel picked up Akane over his shoulder, and carried him into the guild hall, while Laxus got Hisoka. Merlin, Earth-Emma and the exceeds followed suit. Earth-Nashi began to follow, then turned to her Edolas counterpart.

"You think you can pull through this?" she asked. "I mean, your government just collapsed, and…"

"We'll be fine," Edo-Nashi reassured. "We could try out a democracy or something. The hard part will be getting everyone to get over the death of their king."

Earth-Nashi sighed. "What do you suppose was their motivation, whoever it was?"

"None of us are sure," Edo-Nashi admitted. "My guess is that one of my people was a bit stubborn and quick to act. They didn't even let him finish his sentence."

"I see." Earth-Nashi looked through the door at the activity going on outside. "Well, good luck, whatever you decide to do. I hope we meet again someday. Goodbye, me."

"See you around, me."

Earth-Nashi entered the guild hall.

"This is an interesting place," Edo-Emma commented. "Well, I guess I'll be going now. We've got a funeral to prepare, and you've got a pair of dragonslayers to save." She glanced at Hisoka and Akane.

"How did Hisoka manage to activate Dragon Force?" Nashi wondered. "Dragon Force requires a powerful external source, and we were all unable to use magic."

"It may be his dragon soul," Elkhart theorized. "It's possible that he got possessed by his dragon."

"That much I could tell," Nashi acknowledged. "I had to convince Flutlogia to stop because he was killing Hisoka."

"I guess the effect Edolas had on his soul made it easier."

"Anyway…" Edo-Emma turned to Earth-Emma. "…see you around, Earth-me."

Earth-Emma waved her off, and Edo-Emma left the guild hall.

"I think I will be staying in Edolas for now," Laxus decided. "Someone has to be there to search for Freed, Sting and Rogue. And since magic is slowly returning to Edolas, we should be able to return later. You go on ahead."

"I'll stay as well," Bickslow insisted. "You shouldn't be doing that on your own, so I'll accompany you."

"Fair enough," Laxus agreed. "Let's go."

"Me, too," Evergreen chimed in. "We're not the Raijinshuu for nothing, and I've been itching to do something since you guys left me on Earthland."

They all made their way out of the building.

"Well, is everyone here?" Elkhart checked. Everyone nodded, said "yes" or confirmed some other way. Elkhart then took Mystogan's staff and slammed it down on the ground. The giant magic circle around the building glowed, and the building disappeared into the sky.

* * *

Lucy stepped into the hall of the fallen kings, taking another look at Jellal's newly made tomb. Then she turned to the sound of footsteps as Nashi walked in. "What do you want."

"I know it's hard for you, since he meant a lot to you…" Nashi began.

"And your rebellion killed him!" Lucy snapped. Then she wiped her eyes. "Sorry. Yeah, you're right. You were saying?"

"Well, he did kind of die without an heir," Nashi continued, "unless you're secretly pregnant, which I doubt, with everything that was going on."

"You would be correct in your doubt," Lucy replied.

"In that case, we need to establish a new governing system. I believe Fairy Tail would play an important role in maintaining order in the process, and for that, we need their guild master."

Lucy nodded. "Can I at least spend a bit of time alone with him?"

Nashi nodded. "We'll all be waiting for you outside." Then she headed out herself. "She needs a bit pf time alone," she notified everyone, then looked around. "Where are the Raijinshuu?"

"They went ahead in their search," Gajeel replied.

Nashi nodded. "Well, as soon as Lucy gets out here, we'll get started."

* * *

Panther Lily landed on the forest floor, followed by Thomas and Henri. "This way." He led them toward a clearing, where they encountered a village of exceeds. Henri's eyes widened, while Thomas simply smiled.

An older tortoiseshell saw them and flew over, embracing both of them. "My children…" tears of joy welled in the older cat's eyes.

"Wait… we're both your children?" Henri asked.

The older cat nodded. "I'm your mother, Clementine."

"So… we're brother and sister?" Thomas inquired, pointing between himself and Henri.

Clementine nodded.

"Interesting," Thomas mused. "I didn't know that."

"It is surprising," Henri agreed, "considering we only just met two-and-a-half weeks ago."

"Welcome home," Clementine beamed.

Thomas smiled. "We're home."

"Kaa! Those are the last two, are they? Kaa!" A black and white exceed caught their attention by shouting about their return. Immediately, other exceeds began to swarm around them excitedly, partially overwhelming them.

"The search is over!"

"I wonder what their names are."

"How did you find them, Lily?"

"I guess we should celebrate once Happy and Charle get back."

"This is nice," Henri decided.

"Agreed," replied Thomas.

* * *

Akane stirred. William's eyes widened. She wheeled herself towards the head of the hospital bed as the crimson dragonslayer slowly came to. Then she carefully dragged herself out of the wheelchair and onto the bed. Akane's eyes opened. "Will…?"

"Hey," Will greeted.

"How long have I been out?" Akane asked.

"About four days," William replied. "Hisoka's still unconscious."

"Figures…" Akane began to pull himself into a sitting position, at which point both he and William realized in the nick of time he was not wearing anything under the bedsheets. Akane's face became nearly the color of his hair, and William panicked and looked away, her face heating up. Akane quickly laid back down under the sheets, still flustered by that close call. "Okay, you can look now."

William slowly turned her head back to Akane, who thankfully, was now back under the sheets. "Anyway, I'm glad you're okay. When Elkhart looked up the anti-magic radiation given off by Qucrypso, I was really worried about you."

"I see. And what about now?"

"Now I'm glad that you're alive and well, and I'm hoping Hisoka's okay soon."

Akane nodded. Then he gave a little "ooph!" of surprise as William suddenly fell over and hugged him. "Umm…" He briefly tried to decide what to do, then settled with hugging her back.

"You helped save my life." William's voice was muffled as her face was pressed against the pillow. "So don't go around dying like that, okay."

"I _Will_ be more careful," Akane replied.

William sat up and glared at him. "I'm serious."

"Me, too," Akane replied, grinning. "You can be funny and serious at the same time."

William sighed, then slid off the bed and lowered herself into her wheelchair. "Your clothes are over there." She pointed to a nightstand at the foot of the bed. "I'll be going to the main hall now." She wheeled herself up the aisle and out the door.

Akane looked at his hands. The micro-lacrima were gone, and thus, so was the glittery discoloration. He was now, however, still sore all over from the effects. He made sure nobody else was in the room, then reached over and grabbed his clothes. He put them on, then sat on the bed for a few seconds. Then he stood up, steadying himself as he got a little nauseous, and headed over to where Hisoka lay unconscious.

"Worrying about him?" Akane jumped as Porlyusica spoke right behind him. He turned around.

"I'm just wondering when he'll wake up, that's all."

Porlyusica sighed. "I honestly don't even know if he'll survive. His breathing's been getting weaker, and after all, he did overexert himself in that skirmish. In fact, the only reason there's even a question about it is his healing magic. If it weren't for his unusually fast healing, he would be dead by now."

Akane nodded. "My best friend is a reckless idiot, and he had better survive." He turned and headed for the guild hall.

"Well, look who's finally up!" Elkhart greeted. "You had us worried, man."

"Yeah, sorry," Akane replied. He looked over to where Emma and Nashi were fighting near the bar. "Glad to see they're alright." He watched as they became bored and strode over to their table. "So, Will, you said I was out for four days, right? So you'll be able to walk in about a week."

William nodded. "I've been getting impatient, too. We may have managed to get an anti-motion sickness lacrima for this wheelchair, but wheelchairs still have their limitations."

"What about Hisoka?" Nashi asked. "Is he going to be okay?"

Akane frowned and looked down at the table. "We still don't know. His breathing's still getting weaker, according to Porlyusica."

A silence fell around the table. A minute or two passed, and then Nashi spoke up.

"Well, he'd better survive!" she declared. "He made a promise, dammit!"

Merlin nodded. "He's an idiot, but he's an idiot that's our friend. He can't be allowed to die on us!"

Everyone murmured in agreement.

* * *

Everyone in team Dragon King, as well as Elkhart, sat around the hospital bed, watching Hisoka intently. Henri and Thomas sat on the foot of the bed. They all waited. Porlyusica had told them four days ago that Hisoka's condition had stabilized, and since then, his breathing had been growing progressively stronger.

Then he stirred, and everyone cheered.

Hisoka opened his eyes, and everything slowly came into focus. He could hear the sound of people cheering, but he didn't currently see them, as he was looking directly up at the ceiling. "Mm…? Oof!" A person dove into hugging him, followed by another person and a cat. As he registered his surroundings, he realized that the humans and cat hugging him were Nashi, Akane and Henri. "What's going on?" he asked as he noticed the others.

"You were out for nine days," explained Elkhart. "You somehow activated Dragon Force, and it nearly killed you."

"Don't worry us like that again, you idiot!" Nashi whispered in his ear.

Hisoka sighed. It looked like he would have to get used to the new nickname his teammate had given him. Then he remembered something as the three who had hugged him got off. "What happened to the fight?" he asked.

Everyone got solemn looks on their faces.

"Well, for one thing," Merlin explained, "Mystogan's dead."

Hisoka's eyes widened, and he partially sat up, pulling up the sheets to compensate as he realized he wasn't wearing anything. "What happened?!"

"Someone threw a dagger at him from behind," Nashi explained, "shortly after you lost consciousness. We never found out who did it."

Elkhart nodded. "As for other things that happened, Edolas has its magic back, permanently this time. And Edo-Fairy Tail and the former rebels are working together to reestablish law and order. Also, we were still missing Freed, Sting and Rogue, so Laxus, Bickslow and Evergreen stayed in Edolas to search for them.

"But Evergreen wasn't there."

"Elkhart used a weird crystal to bring the entire guild into Edolas, including the people in it," Merlin explained. "He was also able to get us home using Mystogan's tools."

"Speaking of that crystal," Elkhart added, "we put a stop to the random Anima."

Hisoka looked around. "Where are my clothes?"

William pointed to the nightstand at the foot of the bed.

"I guess that means you want us to clear out now?" asked Akane.

Hisoka nodded, and the others got up and left.

"By the way, Elkhart…" Merlin turned to Elkhart. "…I was, for some reason, able to use magic in Edolas. Do you know anything about that?"

"It's the resonance between you and William," Elkhart simply put. "It gives both your magic unique properties."

"But that only works when we're nearby each other."

Elkhart smiled. "It's more powerful than you may think."

"I see." Merlin stroked his chin, thinking about what had happened, and what he had felt.

"You were able to use magic?" inquired William.

Merlin nodded, continuing to think.

* * *

Invel went down the stairs into the council prison. He headed along the hallway until he encountered a specific prisoner. "Would you mind telling us where you're from?"

Soren shook his head. "I'm afraid not. That could get dangerous for all of us."

Invel seethed in frustration. "You didn't seem to care too much about people when you were terrorizing our people."

Soren shrugged. "Admittedly, after having time to think about what I did, it was wrong, even if it was what our new leader ordered. I don't expect you to let me out of here. I do, however, have a message for Hisoka."

"What is it?"

"Tell him that the dragons are planning to take over the world. They will be coming soon, and I hope that we're ready when they do."

Invel showed no fear on his face, but the temperature in the general vicinity dropped several degrees.

"Hisoka is safe for now. But once they find out he's still alive, they will target him, and they will kill him if they get the chance. Both he and our home continent are going to need all the help they can get."

* * *

Hisoka stepped out of the hospital room.

"Well, look who's finally out!" Akane greeted.

Hisoka looked around at his teammates and grinned. "Everyone ready to resume training for the games?"

* * *

 _Edolas._

 _Remember Edolas? That was our first major adventure, Rika, so I certainly hope you remember. Akane and I discovered who our parents are, and Henri and Thomas discovered the rest of their species as well as their bloodline. Oh, by the way, we recently got word from back in Edolas that they're doing surprisingly well with reconstruction; that message arrived shortly after you left._

 _Anyway, I'm doing fine. Akane is still missing, unfortunately. I'm still not sure what got into him. Torden is still pretty anxious about it, and we all miss him. I hope we can find him, or perhaps you can find him while you're gone._

 _One more thing, Rika. I suspect this isn't just a training journey. You're trying to find Aquarius's key, aren't you? I can understand if you are. After all, there was that one moment when we were so close to getting it back. Just be careful. You remember what happened the last time you encountered her current holder. That's all. I hope you return soon._

 _Sincerely, Hisoka_

* * *

 **And that is it for this arc. Did you like that bit at the end with the letter? I'm planning to do that at the end of each arc, and there will be an explanation for that in the far future of this series (near the end). Please tell me what you think, in case it's not such a good idea (for example, accidentally spoiling too much). Also, I completed the next arc, and am already nearly done with the arc after that. Chapter 14 will be released May 26** **th** **, as I am changing the release dates of chapters from every other Monday to every Saturday (I've been writing surprisingly quickly, you see). Oh, and yeah. I'm not afraid to kill off characters like Mashima was (no offense to Mashima-sensei). Sorry for the inconvenience. Hope you enjoyed!**


	14. Baildagch Arc - Family

William took a deep breath, then slid down from the bed. She took a few steps, then dropped to her knees, panting.

"It wasn't just skeletal damage that you took," Porlyusica reminded her. "You also suffered damage to several internal organs, as well as some important muscles. This will be very stressful on your body."

William nodded, then slowly stood back up. She tried taking more deep breaths, which did help, but also caused her ribcage to start aching.

"Take it easy."

"It would be a bit easier if everyone weren't watching me." William glared at her teammates who had entered the hallway to watch.

"Sorry," Emma apologized. "It's just exciting to see my little sister recovering."

"Well, then happy birthday, I guess," William replied.

"Um… well… it is my birthday, but I'm not sure how this correlates with that."

"It's not technically a birthday present," William agreed, grinning slightly, "but wouldn't you agree it's nice that this would coincide with your birthday?"

Emma took a moment to think about this. "I guess so."

"And what about the rest of you?" William turned to the rest of the team.

"Well, we're all excited, too," Akane replied. Merlin nodded.

William sighed. "Well, again, this would be easier without you guys watching."

Henri nodded, then turned to the others. "As guild master of Dragon King, I order you all to clear out and give William some space."

Hisoka rolled his eyes as they all turned to leave the hospital room. "We were already going," he mumbled under his breath.

William sat down on the floor. "Well, I can stand for about half a minute, it seems."

Porlyusica nodded. "It'll improve over time. You'll never get back to where you were before, but you will still get much better than this. It's not just the damage you took, but also the muscular atrophy from not using your legs for two-and-a-half months."

* * *

Hisoka looked at Emma. "You never told us it was your birthday."

"Well, surprise to you two and your cats," Emma replied, looking at him and Akane. "I'm eighteen today."

"Eighteen. And how old is Nashi?"

"Seventeen," she replied. "My birthday's February 24th. What about you?"

"I'm also seventeen," Hisoka replied, "as is Akane. According to our parents, we have the same birthday, which is… either late February or early March."

"Well, your mom said it had been thirty-two days ago…"

"…and that was two days after we arrived in Edolas, and we arrived on March 31st, so…"

"…March 1st."

Hisoka nodded. "That sounds right."

"Wait… you met your parents?"

Hisoka and Akane both nodded in response.

"You're… from Edolas?"

Akane nodded. "More or less," Hisoka replied, getting a bit technical.

"So… you're brothers?"

"No!" Akane blurted out, taken by surprise at the question. "Different parents. They just lived in the same area, that's all."

"Also, while we were born in Edolas, our fathers were from Earthland."

"They ended up in Edolas a while back."

"And fourteen years ago, a random Anima sent us to Earthland."

"Wait… what?" Merlin perked up, surprised to hear this, and turned to them. "But the random Animas only started seven years ago. How can it have gotten you fourteen years ago?"

Hisoka shrugged as they sat down at a table. "It definitely checks out. While the soul fusion process did fog up my earlier memories, I very clearly remember Flumentia finding me when I was quite little, and considering I haven't seen her in _seven_ years…" his teeth gritted as he remembered what Soren had told him.

"Same here," Akane agreed. "Ishugar was killed ten years ago, but I remember learning dragonslayer magic from him long before that."

"It's because the random Animas weren't caused entirely by the fallen star." They all jumped at the voice behind them, and turned to see Elkhart approaching their table. "That lacrima merely caused Anima to run rampant. However, Anima has always existed. It's sort of like a hyperspace hurricane, but in nature, it's a lot rarer than an actual hurricane. It's how Porlyusica ended up on Earthland decades before King Faust started trying to steal our magic."

"I see." Merlin turned back to the table as Elkhart joined them.

"Just out of curiosity, who are your parents?" Nashi asked.

"You know how you said I smelled like Laxus?"

Nashi's eyes widened. "You don't mean…?"

"Well, I'm not his son," Hisoka corrected. "I'm his nephew. Apparently, that half-brother he mentioned mentioned has been living in Edolas for nearly three decades."

"I see."

"My mom is nobody you know."

"What about you, Akane?"

Everyone looked at Akane, with Merlin looking between him and the others, already knowing the answer and waiting for him to speak up. Akane looked around nervously.

"I… don't want to tell you at the moment." Akane felt his energy go down, and he rested his head on his arms.

"Why?" Emma asked. "What's wrong?"

"He said he doesn't want to tell you," Hisoka asserted. "And I can understand why. Please don't make this harder for him."

Akane stood up. "I'll be heading out now." He turned and headed through the main doors.

"What was that about?" asked Elkhart.

"He doesn't want to tell you yet because he's afraid of how you'll react," Hisoka explained. "that, however, is as much as I'm telling you." He stood up. "I think I'll go do some training. If you're interested in continuing where we left off, Nashi, you know where to find me." He went to the guild doors, sprouted his wings, and flew off.

Nashi looked out the doors. It was quite cloudy – it didn't seem like it would rain, but there was also no blue sky visible. Then she turned back to the others. "I might go after him later. He probably went to do some training on his own. More importantly…" she glowered at Emma. " _somebody_ ate my cake!"

Emma glared back. "And what makes you think I did it?"

Elkhart went and sat in his normal shadowy corner, deciding not to mention it. It had been a good piece of cake, and Nashi probably would have come up with an excuse to fight Emma regardless.

* * *

"Shinkuryuu no Tekken!" Akane's fist, engulfed in crimson energy, slammed into the boulder. It cracked slightly. Akane shook hs hand. "Doesn't use much magic power, but increases the power of my hits," he noted to himself. He backed away. "Shinkuryuukon!" He extended his arm in the direction of the boulder, and a pillar of crimson energy shot from his arm, slamming into the boulder and smashing it to bits.

"And how long before you smash the entire island to pieces?"

Akane spun around, swinging his fist in the direction of the voice. Thomas was partially able to dodge, but was still hit in the side. Akane stared in surprise and he quickly retracted his arm. "I am so sorry!"

"It's fine." Thomas dropped to the ground and looked up at Akane. "Is everything alright?"

Akane sat cross-legged on the stony ground. "I mean… I guess. I'm really just thinking."

Thomas raised an eyebrow. "Do tell."

"I wonder about the people at the beach resort."

Thomas gave him a look that said "I know that's not it." "We both know the Magic Council is working on recovering the Anima victims," he said aloud. "Now what were you really thinking about?"

Akane sighed. "My dad, I guess."

Thomas nodded. "I may be better with people's physical health than their emotional health, but can I try to comfort you on the matter?"

Akane shrugged. "Shoot."

Thomas took a deep breath. "Okay, so you do know that they're going to accept you as a member of the team, no matter who your father is, right?"

Akane shrugged again. "I mean, some of them know, and they accepted it." He stared down at the ground. "To be perfectly honest, I don't think they'll have any problem accepting it. What's more important is, can I accept it?"

Thomas sighed. "That's a question you'll have to answer yourself. I cannot help you with that."

Akane nodded. "Fair enough."

Thomas looked around. "Can you think of any other way to train besides smashing rocks on a remote island?"

"Nothing really comes to mind," replied Akane. "The thing is, my element is basically just destructive energy, and how do I fine-tune the element of destructive energy in some way other than destroying things?"

Thomas shrugged. "I mean, there's more to training than fine-tuning how effective your magic is. You also want to increase your magic power. And while this will do that somewhat, there are better methods for the task."

"Like what?"

Thomas shrugged. "Meditating, for one thing. If you can get a good feel of the Ethernanos in the air, you can become better at both absorbing it and containing it."

"I see." Akane relaxed his body and rested his hands on his knees. "I think I'll try that." He closed his eyes.

"This is how the founders of Fairy Tail trained when they previously didn't know any magic."

Akane smiled at Thomas' little tidbit of information. "I see you've done a bit of research since we joined." He continued to relax his mind, not clearing it, but simply letting his thoughts roam free.

* * *

The fish swam over to the human that was sitting cross-legged on the ocean floor. The human's eyes were closed, so he didn't see the fish. The fish swam around, then began nibbling at the human's ponytail, finally getting his attention as he opened his eyes.

"Stop that!" Hisoka commanded, swatting at the fish and scaring it off. "I'm trying to concentrate here." He looked around. It truly was interesting to see the diversity within the water. He watched the fish he had just scared off go rejoin its school, and sighed. He looked up. There was still no sunlight making the surface glint, which meant it was profably still cloudy. Then he decided that he had been sitting on the ocean floor long enough, and swam over to the shore, wading out of the water and onto the beach, and absorbing the water which had soaked his clothes into his skin. Well, there went any craving for salt he might have in the next few days. He looked up to see someone in council uniform.

"Hisoka Dreyar, I presume?" the councilman asked.

"That would be me," Hisoka replied, confused as to why a member of the Magic Council was seeking him.

"I see you can breathe underwater," the councilman commented.

"I'm a river dragonslayer. Of course I can breathe underwater. Why are you here?"

"First of all, let me introduce myself. Invel Yura." The councilman extended his hand. Hisoka looked for a second, then extended his own hand, and they shook.

"Wait… weren't you one of the Spriggan 12? I haven't read much about them, but I heard they were enemies of Fiore. What are you doing on the Magic Council?"

"As you may have also read, Fiore and the Alvarez Empire established a peace treaty. The Magic Council now facilitates magic in both Ishgar and Alakitasia. And as part of that, they needed some Alvarez members."

"I see. So what do you want with me?"

"That godslayer you fought," Invel explained. "Apparently, he has a message for you. Do you wish to hear it?"

Hisoka's eyes widened. Then he thought about this, and looked at Invel with a straight face. "I guess so."

* * *

"Going somewhere?"

Nashi jumped at the sudden voice behind her, and turned to see Elkhart standing there. "Oh… hi."

"Why do you have a map of the southeast lands?" Elkhart queried.

"I… was curious."

Elkhart glared at Nashi. "Nashi, I've known you my entire life, and you only ever get maps of places you intend to go. And here you are, in a cartographer's shop. Not to mention that being 'just curious' would never warrant purchasing a map as expensive as that one."

"I'm… getting it for… a friend…"

"You're a terrible liar, Nashi," Elkhart shot back. "It doesn't take Hisoka's hearing to figure that out."

Nashi looked down at the map in her hands, then glowered at Elkhart.

"You're trying to go after your parents, aren't you?"

"You can't stop me!" Nashi snapped. "We're not in the same guild at the moment."

"I designed your guildmark." Elkhart pointed out the Fairy Tail guildmark on Nashi's exposed arm, which now had wings, horns and a flame added on to it to make it look more Draconic.

Nashi seethed.

"Whatever," Elkhart threw up his hands. "I'm not going to stop you." He turned and stormed out of the shop.

"What was that about?" asked the shopkeeper.

"Nothing you need to worry about," Nashi replied. "Anyway, I'd like to make a purchase."

* * *

"So what sorts of things do we do at a guild master's meeting?" Henri asked.

"Well, obviously, guild stuff," Erza replied. "Although, to be more specific, we discuss things like new council regulations, magical threats, multi-guild quests – things like that."

Henri nodded. "I see. Interesting."

"Anyway, are you ready to go?" asked Erza.

"Yeah. I suppose it's a bit exciting, really. So, where is it, again?"

"Clover Town," Erza replied. "We'll be taking the noon train."

* * *

Hisoka walked towards his apartment, when suddenly, Elkhart stormed past him, throwing the door open and then slamming it in Hisoka's face. Hisoka was quite surprised by this. He slowly opened the door. He then heard another door slam, and he quietly headed upstairs. He was about to enter his room, then hesitated, deciding to turn and knock on Elkhart's door.

"Go away!" Elkhart shouted from the other side.

"I'd like to talk to you," Hisoka called.

"Well, I don't want you talking to me! Go to your own apartment!"

"Even if you don't want it, you clearly need it," Hisoka argued. "Just open the door."

There were some footsteps, and then the door to Elkhart's apartment opened. "What?!"

"First of all, could you maybe calm down a bit?" Hisoka requested.

"I just had a stupid argument with Nashi," Elkhart retorted. "You expect me to be calm?"

"That's not what it's about," Hisoka argued. "I could hear frustration radiating off of you before I left to go training."

"Okay, maybe it's not specifically that," Elkhart acknowledged. "But it definitely didn't help."

"So what is it, then?" Hisoka asked.

Elkhart sighed. "It's frustration with my own magic, mixed with people being stupid."

Hisoka tilted his head. "Hm?"

"You've seen me do fire and lightning magic, right?"

Hisoka thought about this for a second, then nodded. "As well as archive and rune magic. And what was that other magic? The thing that threw off my sense of direction in the race. I've never seen or smelled anything like it."

"Relativity magic," Elkhart explained. "I can manipulate the speed of light, which is actually a lot more than it sounds like, and I can warp space. It's a unique magic that I developed myself."

"And heavenly body magic, as well as requip, right?" Hisoka asked. "That's quite a bit of magic."

"I inherited it from my parents," Elkhart explained. "Anyway, another thing – the main thing frustrating me right now. Up until I was five years old, I also had wind, water and earth magic."

"What happened?"

Elkhart shrugged. "I don't know. My ability with those elements just started to fade away. I don't know what's been going on."

"Well, I can still smell those elemental magics on you," Hisoka replied. "So I don't think they're exactly gone. But why are you suddenly worked up about it now?"

"Partly because I just made another attempt at those elements. Guess what happened!"

Hisoka raised an eyebrow.

"Absolutely nothing! I've tried and tried and tried, for years, and still nothing! I've tried every technique I know. I even tried learning other magics to try and compensate; I thought I might feel better about it, but I couldn't even get over it then!"

Hisoka placed a hand on Elkhart's shoulder. "Elkhart, calm down, please." He could hear Elkhart's breathing and heart rate slow down as the side effect of his own magic did its job. "Now, as you probably know by now, I can hear emotions and basic intent."

Elkhart nodded. "I'm well aware."

Hisoka sighed. "Well, I can tell that you are holding something back," he explained. Elkhart opened his mouth to say something, but Hisoka cut him off. "It's not just anything, though; it's a part of yourself. You're suppressing part of your identity."

Elkhart looked at the hand on his shoulder, and removed it. "I don't need your magic to calm down. I'm just frustrated in the moment. As for what you just said, please stay out of my head."

Hisoka nodded. "I couldn't figure out what it was even if I wanted to. And you really should only let it out when you're ready. However, I believe it may have something to do with your inability to use those elements. With wizards, if you suppress a part of yourself, you suppress a part of your magic. I saw it several times on my home continent." He stood up and headed for the door. Then he stopped and turned back around. "Just out of curiosity, what was it you were arguing with Nashi about?"

"Oh, yeah," Elkhart suddenly remembered. "That may be something you and the rest of Dragon King would want to know about."

That sentence made Hisoka's worry levels skyrocket. "What did she do?"

"She left for the five hundred-year quest."

Hisoka's reaction was impossible to predict. He jumped, and even he couldn't tell what his arms did (some sudden movement), though one of his hands hit the ceiling, at which point he clutched it in pain. He gave that hand a bit of a shake, then stared at Elkhart incredulously. "She what?!"

"You heard me correctly."

"She…! Well… at least she's traveling _with_ someone, right?"

Elkhart shook his head. "She ran off on her own."

Hisoka facepalmed in annoyance. "That idiot… she's not even S-class! How does she even expect to survive?! Where was she before she left?"

"My guess? I ran into her in a cartographer's shop a few hours ago. She didn't have any gear on her then, and she usually would be bringing some with her, so I'm guessing she went back to her house to go grab it."

"Right! I can follow her scent from there." Hisoka opened Elkhart's window and jumped out, immediately taking flight and heading toward Nashi's house.

Elkhart took a second to react. His eyes widened. "You can't…" but Hisoka had already left. "Well, either he's going to try to drag her back kicking and screaming, and she'll kill him, or he'll give in and agree to go with her, and something or someone else will kill him." Elkhart palmed himself in the face. "Cool!" He stood up and paced around the room. "Yeah. I tell you I'm frustrated about people being stupid, and what do you do? Stupid things!" He went to his bedroom and collapsed on the bed, then pondered what he had just said. "Okay, to be fair, he is just concerned for a friend," he reminded himself. "I guess I just need some time by myself. Nashi wore me out, and just as I was recovering from that, Hisoka came along. I'm going to get some sleep." He rolled over on his side, and let his consciousness drift away.

* * *

Nashi stopped suddenly. She listened to and smelled her surroundings. She sighed. "What do you want?"

Hisoka walked around from behind her into her field of view. "What makes you think you'll survive doing a five hundred-year quest, when you're not even S-Class, and Fairy Tail's most powerful wizards haven't returned from the quest in five years?"

Nashi glared at him.

Hisoka stepped over, then grabbed her around the waist and lifted her above the treeline. "I'm not letting my friend do something they have no way of surviving."

"Hey! Put me down!" Nashi started struggling.

"Ouch!" Hisoka let go in surprise as Nashi heated herself up, burning him.

Nashi dropped back to the ground, making a less-than-graceful landing, then recovered, getting up and running. A blue shape flew over her head and slammed down on the ground in front of her, causing her to stop.

"Why are you so determined to go on this suicide mission?!" Hisoka demanded.

"Why are you so determined to stop me?" Nashi retorted. "Also, you know I hate being picked up!"

"Between doing something my friend hates and letting them get themself killed, which one did you think I'd choose?"

Nashi sighed. "You can't change my mind."

"Why are you so determined?"

Nashi sat down on the forest floor, and Hisoka followed suit. "Seeing my parents in Edolas, as well as the fact that you and Akane met your parents, made me think about my actual parents," Nashi explained. "I want to see them again. I want them to come home!" Hisoka could hear frustration, sadness and loneliness radiating from her mind, as well as a strong sense of determination. "I haven't seen them in five years, and my younger brother left Fairy Tail to join Sabertooth. I've spent the past four years of my life with none of my family members with me. Do you understand what that's like?"

"Well, what about me?!" Hisoka argued. "Not to mention Akane. Neither of us can ever visit our parents, because if we went back to Edolas, we'd die."

"Then you know exactly what it's like!" Nashi shouted back, tears forming in her eyes.

"I…" Hisoka thought about it. If there were something he could do, he'd go visit his parents. It was extremely frustrating that he could never visit them and expect to survive, not to mention he had no idea if or when he'd ever see his uncle again. And seven years after his adoptive mother had dropped him off in Alakitasia, he had found out she was dead. It was all frustrating. He just wanted it all back. Thomas and Henri had found their family, and could visit anytime they wanted. Elkhart had his mother, who was the guild master, and both of Emma, Merlin and William's parents were constantly in the guild hall. Nashi was right. It was all super-frustrating. He could feel his eyes watering just like Nashi's.

"You see?" Nashi sniffed and wiped her eyes.

"I…" Hisoka thought carefully about what he was about to say. "You… you're not doing this alone, got it?" Hisoka asserted. "I'm coming with you, and nothing you do or say will change my mind!" He, like Nashi, wiped his eyes. "Your guildmates are your family, too, you know. And family members help each other out! If one of us needs help, that help is provided. If one of us is in danger, the others come to their rescue! Going on this alone is a suicide mission, and I'm coming with you to make sure it's not, okay?!"

Nashi gave a tearful smile. "Thank you."

Hisoka smiled back. "I'm glad we could come to an understanding, even if it wasn't the one I expected."

The two dragonslayers stood up and hugged each other for several minutes. Then they broke the hug, and Hisoka spoke up.

"You think maybe flying will be quicker?"

Nashi thought about this, then nodded. "But if you try to take me home, I'll burn your clothes and not just your hands."

"Noted," Hisoka acknowledged.

* * *

Elkhart looked around, and spotted Akane, Thomas and the Redfox siblings sitting at a table. Once again, he approached them without being noticed and overheard their conversation.

"They didn't go off training," Akane argued. "I flew past the beach where I always see them training, and they weren't there."

"Are you, by any chance, talking about Hisoka and Nashi?" Elkhart asked, startling everyone at the table.

"Sheesh! Don't do that," Akane requested. "It scares people."

"Sorry," Elkhart apologized. "I seem to be naturally quiet, and deliberately making noise as I walk feels weird. Anyway, are you guys talking about the two dragonslayers from your mini-guild who are not currently here?"

"Indeed we are," replied Merlin. "Do you know something about them?"

Elkhart sat down next to him. "Nashi went on the five hundred-year quest. Hisoka went to stop her, but based on the fact that he's still not back and it's been five days, I'm guessing she convinced him to go with her."

Akane's eyes widened. "They what?!"

Emma huffed. "I knew Nashi was stupid, but I didn't think she was that stupid. As for Hisoka, I don't know him too well, but he seems dumb enough to hang out with Nashi."

Akane, Merlin and William glared at Emma, while Thomas sat there and watched, and Elkhart rolled his eyes. "This is serious," Akane scolded. "We need to form a plan."

* * *

You know, Nashi is reminding me more and more of her father. Well, I imagine you've figured out by now what this next arc is going to be (don't worry; I promise the Grand Magic Games comes after this one). Hope you enjoyed!


	15. Baildagch Arc - A Dangerous Path

"We have to form a plan," Akane declared. "Any ideas?"

"Wait, hold up," William broke in. "You're planning on going after them?"

"Even if we're staying in the same guild hall, we're officially a separate guild now," Merlin explained to her. "Fairy Tail can't legally interfere. Therefore, we're the only ones who can."

Akane nodded. "I was going to say that." In truth he had barely done any research so far, and had not known of that particular law.

"I suppose you're right," William conceded. "But none of us are S-Class, and this is the five hundred-year quest we're talking about. We need to consider how we're going to go about this."

"Emma, what do you think?" Akane turned to where Emma had been just a minute ago. "Emma?"

The others looked at the now-empty space on the bench.

"Kuso!" Elkhart cursed. "How many more of you are going to do this?"

"Well, I know Will's staying here," Merlin asserted.

"Agreed," Akane chimed in.

"Why?" asked William.

"What do you mean, 'why'?" asked Merlin incredulously. "You still can't stand for more than two minutes, and you're certainly in no condition for fighting."

"You're saying there will be the need to fight?"

Merlin opened his mouth, then closed it again.

"You're not planning on getting into fights, are you?"

"Well, we're not going to try to, but there'll probably be plenty of people we run into who don't feel the same way."

William sighed. "Well, even if that happens, I don't have to fight directly. As you may remember, our magic power increases when we're near each other."

"Will…" Akane began.

"Hmmm?" William turned her attention to Akane.

"I… we – don't want you to get hurt again," Akane pleaded. "Watching you get crushed by that dragon was already way too much."

"Same with me," Merlin agreed. "I never want to see anything like it again."

William stood up. "Well, I won't let it happen, and as far as I know, neither will you."

"Well, I am a bit more comfortable with the thought of the Blue Steel twins going," Elkhart agreed. "And as far as I know, William will be quite safe as long as she doesn't engage in combat."

"Well, now comes the hard part," Thomas put in. "Locating the others."

"Done." Elkhart pulled up a lacrima display through his archive magic. On it there was a map with eight tiny black dots on it. Four were concentrated on Magnolia, another was in Clover Town, one was a little ways east of Magnolia, and two more were in southern Pergrande.

"How did they get that far that quickly?" Akane wondered.

"They probably flew pretty quickly," Elkhart replied. "Hisoka seems to be overexerting himself again, though they slowed down after two days."

"Also," added Merlin, "how did you gain the means to track us?"

"I implanted a bit of marker magic in your Dragon King guildmarks," Elkhart replied. "You don't have to worry about enemies tracking you this way, though. I fine-tuned it to only work for me. I also launched some magical mapping satellites so as to form an accurate visual of Ishgar."

* * *

"Well, it seems we've officially left Ishgar," Hisoka declared, sitting down on a log.

"Right." Nashi plopped some wood within a stone ring, and lit it with her breath.

"Maybe we should light a fire the natural way," Hisoka suggested. "That way you could eat it."

"It's fine," Nashi reassured him. "I have plenty of magic power at my disposal."

They sat on their logs for a bit.

"It must be a dangerous war, to be rated higher than the hundred-year quest," Hisoka mused.

"It is," Nashi confirmed. "There are these invaders from the southeast, and they're a really efficient fighting force. The quest is apparently to keep them at bay. It's unlikely that we can defeat them, even with the help of Fairy Tail's strongest team."

"I see." Suddenly, Hisoka fell silent, and signaled for Nashi to do the same. He listened to Nashi's brainwaves, as well as his own. He listened to the fire crackling. He listened for other sounds.

"What is it?" Nashi whispered.

"Shh…" Hisoka sat perfectly still and listened very carefully. He heard another set of brainwaves coming from behind him. Suddenly, he whipped his head to one side as a purple magical bullet whizzed past his face and created a smoldering crater in a nearby tree. He responded by spinning around. "Kawatatsu no Houkou!" He released his breath weapon in the direction the bullet had come from, and he saw a dark shape leap out of the way.

"Karyuu no Yokugeki!" Nashi brought her arms forward, slashing two long tendrils of flame at the attacker. They missed as they dodged out of the way, and a few trees were set ablaze.

"Careful!" Hisoka warned. "You're lucky we're not in a dense forest. Kawatatsu no…!" His attack was cut off as a chain which appeared to be made of magical energy connected with his ankle and began to drag him off. "Crap…" He sprouted his wings and tried flying upward, and, as he had predicted, the attacker was dragged into the air with him. He continued to rise into the air with the surprised purgatory mage, then rapidly dove down. He expected the attacker would have no means of getting out of the way, and could therefore be grabbed in midair. However, the attacker quickly retracted the chain, and used his free arm to grab Hisoka's wrist and twist him out of the way. The two plummeted towards the ground, and Hisoka quickly swerved upwards to soften the landing. The two tumbled to the ground. "That was not the best of ideas," Hisoka declared. "Kawatatsu no Tekken!" Water condensed around his fist, and he landed a blow, assisted by pressurized water, on the man, who was sent sprawling as the chain attached to Hisoka's ankle disappeared.

"Karyuu no Kagizume!" Nashi leaped in, delivering a flame-powered kick to the man's face and knocking him unconscious.

"Nice timing," Hisoka complimented.

"Thanks," Nashi acknowledged. "Now what are we going to do with this guy?"

Hisoka shrugged. "Whatever we decide, we have to do it quickly, since he'll be waking up in a few minutes."

"Right…" Nashi looked over at the campfire. "I believe I have some rope in my duffel bag. We can tie him up with that."

"Hurry!"

Nashi ran over and rifled through her bag. She found what she was looking for and pulled out the rope, then went over and wrapped it around the man and the tree.

"Make sure to immobilize his hands. That's where his magic is focused."

Nashi nodded, making sure his hands would be unable to do anything. "It's similar to Soren's magic," she commented.

"Actually, it's a little more akin to Fairy Tail's second master, Precht Gaebolg. Purgatory magic."

"Oh, yeah." Nashi suddenly recalled her knowledge of the man who had searched so desperately for the "one magic."

Hisoka looked over at the man they had just tied up, who was now beginning to stir. "I wonder what we're going to do with this guy. The rope is just a temporary fix. We need to make sure he doesn't cause us further trouble."

"I think asking why he attacked us would also be good."

"Yeah. It would. Let's do that."

They turned towards the man, who was now awake and looking between the two of them.

* * *

Elkhart looked up to a knock on his door. He looked back down at the design he was creating, then stood up, walked over and opened the door to see Merlin. "You want something?"

"Yeah," Merlin confirmed. "I was wondering if you could maybe… come with us? You're the most powerful Fairy Tail member of our generation, and we could really use the support."

Elkhart sighed. "You remember why I didn't stop Nashi in the first place, right?"

Merlin nodded. "We're now in two different guilds."

"Therefore, not my responsibility."

Merlin and Elkhart stood there in silence for a bit. Merlin pondered for a good answer, then spoke up.

"Well, then, we have a job request for you, as a guild wizard."

Elkhart raised an eyebrow. "And what might that request be?"

"Help the Dragon King guild rescue one of their friends: Nashi Heartfilia."

Elkhart sighed. "You don't know how to give up, do you? And what would my reward be? After all, every job a guild wizard does has some kind of reward."

Merlin smiled. "The reward is that all of your friends are more likely to come home safely."

Elkhart's eyes widened. Then he spent a moment looking down at the floor, trying to process what Merlin had just said. He looked back up at Merlin. "Can I… take some time to think about it?"

"Uh… sure, I guess," Merlin replied as Elkhart closed the door.

Elkhart turned and headed into his bedroom, then fell over onto his bed. "Friends?" he asked himself aloud. "My friends? Is he for real?" He pondered this for a moment. "So… he's saying that they're my friends? This is incredible. Does he mean it?" Tears formed in his eyes. As for what emotion it was, he had absolutely no clue. They were emotional tears to be certain, but he had no idea what emotion they were for. "I mean, I never really bothered to make any closer friends than just the general 'I have guildmates' thing. Did I really just manage to make closer friends without trying? Also, why am I pondering this? He could have meant a general guildmates thing. No…" He rolled over restlessly. "He's trying to say that I'm a truly close friend to them. That I can tell. I've never had genuine friends like this…" He lay there for a second, then jumped up from the bed. He looked at the schematic on the floor, then bent down and rolled up the paper, and it dematerialized, going into his requip inventory. He then did the same with some drawing tools, loose pieces of various materials, and tools. He then put on his black boots and his dark green cloak, and exited his apartment, heading down the stairs and finding the others outside.

"I knew you'd come," Merlin beamed. Akane was standing a bit behind him, with William on his back, her arms around his neck for stability, and Thomas was floating in midair next to them. " Well, mostly because I heard you talking to yourself."

"Uh…"

"Relax. It's nothing new to me. You don't have to be embarrassed."

"Are we ready to go, then?" asked Thomas.

Elkhart looked around at them. "I guess so. So I'm guessing we're going to track down Emma first?"

Merlin nodded. "After that, we're telling her the plan, and then we're going after Nashi and Hisoka."

"You know, come to think of it," William reminded as they began walking, "we should probably hide our guildmarks. We might run into someone we don't want knowing we're associated with Fairy Tail."

Elkhart _tsk_ ed in annoyance, inadvertently moving his hand up to his right eye. "There goes my depth perception, then."

Merlin looked over at Elkhart, then realized the issue. "Oh, yeah. What should we do there? That mark's covering a quarter of your face."

"Maybe we could bandage it up," Akane suggested. "We could pretend it's a recent injury."

Elkhart seethed. "Are you sure there aren't any better ideas?"

"Well, we could temporarily remove your guildmark," Thomas suggested.

Elkhart's eyes widened in anger, and he looked Thomas directly in the eye. "No!" Then he realized his overreaction, and his gaze softened. "Sorry. But… no. The guildmark is a part of my identity." _I'm already missing enough of my identity as is._ Merlin gave him a look, and Elkhart realized he had accidentally sent that as a telepathic message to the bluenette. _Nobody else heard that,_ he added. _Don't say a word. I didn't mean to send that to anyone, and that was private, so don't say anything._

Merlin realized what was going on, and nodded. _I understand. Sorry I overheard that._

 _It's not your fault,_ Elkhart reassured him. Then he spoke aloud. "The bandage idea will do."

"I mean, it's not that important, is it?" Akane speculated. "I don't think that many people are out to get us. Let's just forget it, alright?"

Elkhart nodded slowly, then turned east. "Well, shall we be going, then?"

They headed out and joined the others, then started walking.

"You know, I've always found you intriguing," Akane said to Elkhart. "I don't see very many people like you."

Elkhart looked at Akane. "What do you mean?"

"So you know that weird thing I have, with the way I recognize people? Well, it's basically like I see the shape and color of your soul. And yours is of a pretty rare variety."

"Uh…"

"Anyway, let's go."

* * *

"Would you mind telling us your name?" asked Hisoka. "It would make things a bit easier."

"Not a chance," the purgatory wizard replied. "You think I would reveal my name to the enemy just because they asked?"

"'Enemy'?" Nashi inquired.

"Those tattoos on your arms. I don't recognize those outer markings, but that bit at the center is unmistakably the mark of the Fiorean mage guild Fairy Tail." He spoke in a heavy accent that neither Nashi nor Hisoka recognized.

"Something to call you, at least," Hisoka negotiated. "It doesn't have to be your real name."

The man sighed. "My name is Jochi," he replied.

"Well, then, Jochi, my first question is, how do you know about Fairy Tail?"

"A couple of your guildmates are fighting on the front lines. They're one of the main forces holding us back. A couple of dragonslayers, an ice wizard, a celestial spirit summoner, and one other guy who makes things simply break apart with his magic. Oh, and two cats. They're quite formidable, but we've held our ground so far."

Nashi's eyes widened. "You're…"

Hisoka interrupted. "So you're a part of the invading forces, huh? How did you get this far west?"

"I snuck past your defenses," Jochi explained. "Thought I'd take a look at Fairy Tail, so that we could evaluate what it would take to destroy it. Then, while I was traveling, I spotted you two. Thought I'd take you out easily, but I didn't realize you were both dragonslayers."

"Not good with dragonslayers, huh?"

"Before we left, we were about to unleash our dragons," Jochi digressed. "I wonder how much longer your guildmates will last then."

Hisoka heard worry and fear coming from Nashi, and smugness coming from Jochi. "What kinds of dragons? How many?!"

Jochi grinned. "Does it matter? Your friends are toast. With those dragons, we can defeat the opposing forces and conquer the world."

Hisoka heard emotions of rage and frustration coming from behind him. He turned around to see Nashi raising a fire-engulfed fist "Karyuu no…!"

"Nashi, no!" Hisoka brought up his own hand and grabbed the flaming fist, putting it out with his water. "He's not worth it. We'll find your parents, okay? And they'll still be alive."

"Doubtful," Jochi retorted. "Dragons are pretty powerful. And we have quite a few of them on our side."

"You're bluffing!" Nashi snapped.

"Unfortunately, he's not," Hisoka contended. "If he were, I would be able to detect it. However…" He turned back to Jochi. "…you underestimate our guildmates. I'm sure you've heard of how Acnologia was defeated?"

"Now who's bluffing?" Jochi asserted. "You're not the only one who can sense intent and emotion."

Hisoka's eyes widened.

"What are you talking about?!" demanded Nashi. "Those two dragonslayers on the front lines were two of the dragonslayers who killed Acnologia."

"Y-Yeah," Hisoka stuttered. "I'm not sure how you thought I was lying about that. Natsu Dragneel and Wendy Marvell, right? For your information, they were two of the seven dragonslayers who killed Acnologia."

"Still hearing lies," Jochi retorted. "I mean, the girl here is telling the truth, or at least what she thinks is the truth."

Nashi turned to Hisoka. "What's he talking about, Hisoka? I know that all of what you just said was true. How can he be calling it a lie? Everyone knows about this."

"To be fair, I also thought every word of that was true, until I heard it come out that water dragonslayer's mouth, while simultaneously detecting deceitful intent," Jochi explained. "Hisoka, right? Would you mind telling us what it is you're hiding?"

Hisoka took a few steps back, staring wide-eyed between Nashi and Jochi. He clamped his teeth together, grinding them in frustration.

"He's right," Nashi realized. "What are you hiding?" She gave Hisoka a concerned look.

Hisoka sighed. "Nashi, just promise me you won't think any differently of Akane once you hear all of this, okay? I wanted to wait for him to be comfortable with telling you himself, but it seems that the only way you'll trust me is if I tell you now."

"What does this have to do with Akane?" Nashi asked.

"I'll explain in a moment," Hisoka reassured. "The first thing you need to know is: Acnologia is still alive."

* * *

 _Emma, wait!_

Emma looked around, then realized the voice had been inside her head. "Elkhart?"

 _Yes, it's me. Wait up!_

Emma stopped in her tracks, then turned and looked up, seeing a couple of people flying towards her. As they got closer, she could see that one of them was Elkhart, using his Meteor spell, and there was also Thomas carrying Merlin, and Akane carrying William. They all landed near Emma.

"What are you here for?" asked Emma.

"First off, what are you doing?" inquired William as she got down from Akane's back.

"Isn't that obvious?" Emma retorted. "I'm going after Nashi and Hisoka."

"Well, you can't bring them back on their own," Merlin argued. "We're coming with you."

Emma sighed. "You do realize there's no way Nashi is going to allow any of us to bring her back, right? And I don't think it's going to be that different with Hisoka."

Akane raised an eyebrow. "Then why are you going after her?"

"Gihi!" Emma chuckled. "I'm going to assist her."

Everyone jumped in shock. "Huh?!"

"Wait… I thought you hated Nashi," Elkhart protested.

"Damn right I do," Emma confirmed. "And I don't want her to have all the glory of going on the five hundred-year quest when she's not even S-class. I would just try to bring her back, but there's no way that's going to happen. Even if we did successfully drag Nashi back to Magnolia, she'd just go straight back to trying to go. She doesn't give up on something that's important to her, and personally, I'm not going to let her have all the fun."

Elkhart sighed. "I may study a lot of things, but I am never going to fully understand you two."

"So there are two logical options for you guys," Emma explained. "You can either come with me to fight them, or you can forget about dragging either of us back and go home."

William sat down as she began to feel her legs weakening from the stress of standing.

"Are you sure she's not going to come back?" Merlin asked.

"Absolutely," Emma replied. "I fight her daily, so I know exactly how she thinks in a tough situation."

Akane stepped forward. "I'm going. I have reason to believe it would be similar with Hisoka."

Elkhart sighed. "There's no way you guys are going to survive on your own. You'll need backup from an actual S-Class wizard. I'm going, too."

"Well, they are my guildmates," Thomas conceded. "As are you guys. I'm going."

"Same here," William chimed in. "I may not be able to fight directly at the moment, but I can provide support."

Merlin glared at his twin sister, mostly out of worry. "You realize both are parents are going to be extremely worried, right? You're definitely not going anywhere without me!"

William smiled. "I take that as meaning you're coming as well?"

Merlin's glare turned into a grin. "Gihi!"

"Alright!" Akane clapped his hands together, grabbing everyone's attention. "So, two of our friends are headed towards certain death. Our mission is to assist them so as to make death not-so-certain. Everyone ready?"

Everyone gave some sort of confirmation.

Akane grinned. "Let's go save Hisoka and Nashi!"

* * *

Nashi's eyes widened. "Acnologia is… still alive?"

Hisoka nodded. "Akane, Laxus and I met him in Edolas. Apparently, he dematerialized and ended up there. He's also, however lost his power, as well as settled down and even started a family. They had one kid, who, at the age of three, disappeared and ended up in Earthland."

"Akane," Nashi whispered.

Hisoka nodded. "That was why he was nervous about telling you guys about his parents. He wasn't sure how you would react to finding out he was Acnologia's son."

Nashi dropped to the ground, sitting cross-legged and staring at the ground. "I mean, yeah. Acnologia did nearly destroy the world…" She looked back up at Hisoka. "…but Akane is Akane! I don't care who his father is. They are not the same person, and Akane is our friend."

Hisoka whipped around to face Jochi. "And if _you_ tell a single soul, you _will_ regret it! I will personally see to it that you wish you were never born! Tell me I'm lying! I dare you!"

Jochi sighed. "Careful, now. You don't want to let your anger overtake you."

Hisoka knelt down and pressed Jochi's head against the tree he was tied to. "Need I repeat myself?!" He pressed harder, causing Jochi to grunt in pain.

"You're not lying," Jochi confirmed, and Hisoka released him.

"And don't you dare forget that," Hisoka warned with a demonic look. "Now, I want you to go back to your forces, and explain to them that Fairy Tail is the most powerful guild on the continent of Ishgar. I want you to tell them that Fairy Tail cares about its guildmates, that they care for the people around them, and you absolutely do not want to make an enemy out of them! Understand?!"

Jochi nodded, and Hisoka began to untie him.

"What are you doing?" demanded Nashi. "How do you know he won't just attack us again?"

"I didn't detect any deceit in that gesture," Hisoka replied. "He really intends to do what I just said." He removed the rope.

Joshi stood up, then looked at Hisoka.

"Run." The fire in Hisoka's eyes and the drop in pitch said it all.

Joshi took off.

Hisoka looked at Nashi, noticing her shocked look. "Are you alright?"

"'Am _I_ alright'?" Nashi looked him directly in the eye, making Hisoka a bit uncomfortable. "Hisoka, you weren't yourself there. The question should be, are _you_ alright?"

"I… what do you mean? I'm fine."

"Are you? You just showed an incredibly hostile side of yourself – one you didn't even show when we were fighting Soren. Come to think of it, I did see it when you were threatening the Edolas version of me."

Hisoka perked up at the mention of Soren, and he thought back to the message Invel had delivered him. "I get protective of my friends, okay? Also, I have quite a bit on my mind."

Nashi didn't respond.

"Nashi?"

Still no response. Nashi just stood there, frozen.

Hisoka walked over to her and waved a hand in front of her face, still with no response. He sighed. "Just because it doesn't take me by surprise anymore doesn't make that any less annoying. I was in the middle of saying something, you know." He turned to face the dark-haired older woman behind him.

"It's not like I have any control over it," Ultear retorted. "I merely exist within here."

"Whatever. I'm still annoyed, even if I'm not annoyed at you."

Ultear looked around. "Looks like you're a bit east of Ishgar. What brings you here?"

"Nashi and I are going on the five hundred-year quest," Hisoka explained. "We're trying to get her parents home."

Ultear sighed. "Be careful, Hisoka."

"I can't die, right? I should be fine."

"Based on these echoes, you're unlikely to die any time soon," Ultear acknowledged. "However, I have witnessed fate being defeated before. Don't test your luck, Hisoka. This is a dangerous path you're taking, and it won't end well."

Hisoka nodded. "I promise I won't act like I'm invulnerable. I'm not stupid."

"You'd better not." Ultear dematerialized, and Hisoka turned back to Nashi.

"Yeah, I'm not so sure you're alright," Nashi continued. "What is this about?"

"I'm protective of my friends," Hisoka replied. "Also, I have a few things on my mind. Don't worry. I'll be fine. Anyway…" He turned to face east. "…shall we?"

Nashi slowly nodded, the concern not leaving her eyes, and they continued on their journey.

* * *

 **I am** _ **so**_ **sorry I forgot to release this yesterday. There was a lot happening, and it slipped my mind. But regardless, hope you enjoyed!**


	16. Baildagch Arc - Dance of the Dragons

"I can't read it." Hisoka admitted.

"Ugh!" Nashi groaned. She turned and headed over to a bench, then threw herself onto it.

Hisoka took another look at the sign on the building, then joined Nashi on the bench. "I mean, I've been in this area before, back when Flumentia would take me places. I can't really read it, but I think that's a wizard guild."

"Well, we're looking for a hotel or someplace to stay."

"True, but maybe we can find someone who can help in there. Come on." He jumped up from the bench and headed for the building, then turned back and gestured for Nashi to follow.

"Fine." Nashi stood up and headed after Hisoka.

The two wizards walked through the guild doors. It was similar to the Fairy Tail guild hall, though the furniture and theme were slightly different. An elderly woman whom Hisoka assumed was the guild master said something in a language he couldn't understand, though Hisoka could tell she was questioning them.

"Hello!" Hisoka greeted. "My name is Hisoka…" He gestured to himself. "…and this is my friend, Nashi." He pointed out Nashi.

The guild master raised an eyebrow, then began to speak West Common. "You are not from here, I see. What brings you so far east?"

Hisoka leaned back slightly, surprised to find someone who spoke their language so quickly. Then he collected himself. "Well, we're on our way to visit someone. We were wondering if you could give us directions to the nearest hotel?"

The guild master sighed, then gave a command to one of the other guild members – a man with short, black hair and a fairly neat, well-trimmed beard – who obediently stood up and walked over to Hisoka and Nashi. Then he looked at the keychain attached to Nashi's hip and stared wide-eyed. He said something, and Hisoka could detect hints of recognition and surprise.

"What?" Nashi asked. "I'm a celestial spirit mage. I have keys."

"Those keys," the man whispered, "have been missing for over two thousand years." He looked up at Nashi as everyone in the guild reacted in some way to recognizing Nashi. "What association do you have with the Heartfilia clan?"

"Two thousand years?" Nashi inquired. "Are you saying that, two thousand years ago, these keys were here?"

"Those keys were created by Agalia Heartfilia, the first of the celestial spirit mages, and the founder of our guild, Pnevmatikò Ìchnos."

Nashi's tilted her head, confused. "I've never heard of her."

"How did you get those keys?"

"My name is Nashi Heartfilia. I am the firstborn of Lucy Heartfilia."

"Surprise?" Hisoka said, earning him a few strange looks.

The man standing before them bowed. "I am Nikos," he introduced himself. "This is our guild master, Helen." He pointed to the elderly woman, confirming Hisoka's suspicion that she was, indeed, the guild master. "I will gladly let you both stay in my home. There is plenty of space."

Hisoka smiled. "Thank you."

Nashi nodded. "Thank you," she repeated. "Your hospitality is greatly appreciated."

Nikos smiled back at Nashi. "Thank _you_ for this great honor. Come. I will show you to my home."

As they followed Nikos out the doors, Hisoka leaned over and whispered to Nashi. "Somebody's popular," he mused.

"It would seem so," Nashi agreed. "This feels weird."

"What? Being popular?" Hisoka joked.

Nashi glared at him.

"Sorry. You actually are popular back at home. So what exactly is so weird about it?"

"Taking advantage of my popularity," Nashi replied. "I usually just do my own thing without really caring how popular I am."

"I have noticed that," Hisoka agreed. "I mean, I just used my popularity to attract larger crowds back when I was performing on the streets. But that was just for practical purposes like making a living. I can see where you're coming from."

"Speaking of your past as a street performer, I have an idea for how we can obtain food money, once we're no longer staying with this guy."

Hisoka gave Nashi a blank look, then realized what she was suggesting, and sighed. "Fine, but on one condition."

Nashi tilted her head out of curiosity.

Hisoka grinned. "You perform with me."

"Huh?!" Nashi stopped in her tracks and stared at Hisoka incredulously.

"Is something the matter?" Nikos asked.

"No," Nashi and Hisoka simultaneously replied.

"I see. Well, anyway, this is my house."

Hisoka and Nashi looked up at the three-story mansion before them. Hisoka looked around and saw that the neighboring houses were similarly majestic.

"Amazing," Nashi breathed.

"So, this is a wealthy neighborhood, huh?" Hisoka queried.

Nikos shrugged. "Middle class, more like it."

"This must be a rich city…" Hisoka trailed off.

"We do a lot of imports and exports. Really, this city is slightly poorer than what is considered average within our country. But, as you can see, we are still quite well off."

"Incredible…" Nashi whispered as they stepped into Nikos's house.

Inside was a huge room, with multiple floating lacrima which appeared to be lights. Decorating the floor was a huge rug with abstract astronomical patterns on it, including the Zodiac, and various couches and armchairs, with a relatively large coffee table at the center. At one end of the room was a fireplace with a lacrima display above it.

"Sleep where you like," Nikos invited. "I'm afraid I didn't prepare any rooms to be guest bedrooms, as I wasn't expecting anyone."

"That's fine," Nashi reassured him. "I like sleeping on the couch."

"I don't have any sleeping preferences," Hisoka added. "As long as I can make myself physically comfortable, that's good enough for me."

Nikos nodded. "There's a bathroom over there." He pointed to a door on the opposite end of the room. "Tell me if you need anything." He headed up the stairs and disappeared from sight.

As soon as he had left, Nashi turned to Hisoka. "I don't dance."

"Don't or can't?" asked Hisoka.

"I don't know how, okay? I never learned how to dance. My specialty is combat, not entertainment."

"And yet, you intend to be in the Grand Magic Games."

"That's different," Nashi retorted. "There, you fight and it happens to be entertaining. With dancing, the sole purpose is to entertain."

Hisoka shook his head. "Not only do you not know how to dance, but you don't seem to understand why dancing is done. Entertainment is not the sole reason for dancing; it's far from it. There's way more to dancing than that."

"Still, I don't dance."

Hisoka smiled. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, flat, trapezoidal lacrima which appeared to have parallel grooves dividing it into seven sections of decreasing size. He touched a few of the sections lightly with his fingers, as well as some of the grooves, causing various musical notes to play out. He acquired a steady rhythm, then set the lacrima down on the coffee table as it began to play a slow waltz on its own. "I'll teach you, then." He extended a hand towards Nashi. "Shall we dance?"

"Hisoka, no."

"Hisoka, yes," Hisoka asserted, continuing to smile warmly. "We'll start with the basics. I promise you that it's lots of fun once you get the hang of it. Besides, it can help greatly with any form of elemental magic, especially slayer-type magic."

"You're not going to leave me alone about this, are you?" Nashi looked at Hisoka's extended hand, then back up at Hisoka. She sighed and took his hand. "Alright. If you can teach me quickly and effectively, I'll perform with you."

* * *

Akane knelt down, examining the ground. "There was a fight here," he deduced. "A small skirmish to be exact. It didn't last long. It was about a week and a half ago, which matches those campfire remains."

"Good with tracking, are we?" Elkhart mused. "You put the enchantments I placed on your guildmarks to shame."

"We did a lot of this when hunting back at home," Akane explained. "There's no snow for footprints, but I think I've got this. And, of course, it's better than your enchantments when they go off the map."

"You have a point there," Elkhart admitted.

"And they're headed into Graecos," Merlin noted. "The people there generally have a really good sense of hospitality, so they might be there for a few days."

"You've been there?" Akane inquired.

"Will and I went there a few times on past jobs."

William knelt next to Akane, lowering her face near the ground. "Their scent is getting stronger. We're catching up."

Akane glanced at William, then looked over at a nearby tree and walked over to it. "Looks like someone was tied up here. There are rope-shaped depressions in the bark."

William followed him and sniffed the tree. "Not Hisoka or Nashi, though. Someone else, and they were here at around the same time as them." She stood off and headed in a certain direction. "They then headed separate ways. I wonder what that was about."

Emma shrugged. "Who knows? Should we go after that guy as well, maybe?"

Elkhart shook his head. "Nashi and Hisoka felt it would be alright to let them be. I don't see why we can't. We'll ask them about it when we meet up."

"Agreed," William chimed in as she sat down on the ground. "Tracking that guy could result in unnecessary fighting. Let's find Hisoka and Nashi."

Akane looked west at the sunset. "Right. But first, let's camp out here for the night. We've made significant progress in catching up, and personally, I'd like some rest."

"Same here," Elkhart agreed. The others gave some indication of approval, and Elkhart pulled a few rolled-up sleeping bags out of his requip inventory. He tossed them to the others, then rolled out his own.

"Nice!" Akane commented as he caught his sleeping bag. "Do you usually use your inventory for stuff like this?"

Elkhart nodded. "I don't collect very much armor or weapons, so I store most of my traveling gear there."

"Right. Well, goodnight!" He dropped the sleeping bag and laid down, using it as a pillow.

"Um, that's not how you use it…" Elkhart trailed off as he realized Akane had already fallen asleep.

"Oh, just leave him be." William waved Elkhart off, smiling at Akane. "He looks so peaceful."

Elkhart sighed. "Whatever. Goodnight." He crawled into his sleeping bag and closed his eyes.

"I'll take first watch," Thomas offered. "The rest of you can go to sleep."

* * *

"So, you place your left hand on my shoulder…" Hisoka indicated his right shoulder, and Nashi obliged. "Now, please don't burn me or anything, but I'm going to place my right hand around your waist."

"Yeah," Nashi agreed. "It wouldn't have ended well for you if you did that without warning."

"Which is why I told you ahead of time." Hisoka slipped his right hand around Nashi's waist, resting on the small of her back. Then he took her right hand in his left. "This position is used in social dancing for swinging and waltzing. You can tell by the music I just started up that we're going to be doing a waltz."

Nashi nodded.

"Now, on one, I'm going to move my left foot out to the side, and at the same time, you're going to move your right foot in the same direction, and we'll slide in that direction. Then, when I say one again, we're each going to do the same with our other foot. Then we repeat. I'm going to say one, two, three, repeatedly in time with the music. Got it?"

"Yeah," Nashi confirmed.

"Okay. Ready, aaaand _one_ , two, three, _one_ , two, three, _one_ , two, three, _one_ , two, three…"

Nashi stepped in time with the music, trying to follow Hisoka's steps as he led her around the floor. "Sorry!" she apologized as she accidentally stepped on Hisoka's foot.

"It's alright." Hisoka came to a stop and released Nashi. "That's something a lot of beginners do by accident."

"Well, that's a bit reassuring." Nashi headed over to the nearest couch and sat on it. "But I do have a question."

"Ask away." Hisoka joined Nashi on the couch.

"I'm pretty sure this isn't the type of dancing you were doing on the street. Why aren't we learning that?"

"We're starting with the basics," Hisoka explained. "Street performances are a bit more complicated than formal dance events, and there's a lot of improv involved. You'll want to get the hang of formal dancing before you move on to creative dancing." He jumped up and extended a hand. "Let's keep practicing."

Nashi smiled, nodded, and took his hand. Hisoka, like before, put his right hand around her waist, and took her right hand in his left, while Nashi placed her left hand on his shoulder.

"Now, this time, after each large step, you're going to do two small steps in place, in time with the music."

Nashi nodded.

"Ready, and _one_ , two, three, _one_ , two, three, _one_ , two – there you go – two, three, _one_ …" he trailed off, letting Nashi grow accustomed to listening to the music rather than his counting. Occasionally, Nashi would accidentally step on Hisoka's foot again. "Don't worry about it," Hisoka reassured her. "Just keep going." He glanced up to see Nikos standing on the balcony, watching them. They kept dancing for a bit, with Nashi's foot-stepping becoming less and less frequent. Then Hisoka came to a stop, causing Nashi to also stop, and he released her, then turned and looked up at Nikos, who was now clapping as he walked down the stairs.

"That was beautiful," he complimented as Hisoka picked up the lacrima from the coffee table and made it stop.

"Uh, thanks?" Hisoka nervously glanced around the room as he tried to decide how he felt about someone watching them. "So, how much of that did you see?"

"Well, I was there for a few minutes. I saw you look up at me. That was about when I came in. You are an amazing dancer. I take it you were teaching Nashi here?"

Hisoka nodded.

"By the way, I don't think I ever got your name."

"I'm Hisoka. Hisoka Dreyar."

Nikos's eyes widened. "Dreyar?"

"Yeah. Why?"

Nikos stared at him for a few with a shocked look on his face, then burst out laughing, confusing Hisoka and Nashi.

"What? What's so funny?"

Nikos tried to contain his laughter. "Sorry. It's just…" He giggled a bit. "You're a Dreyar?!"

"What's so funny about being a Dreyar?!" Hisoka demanded.

"Well, you see…" Nikos wheezed, trying to catch his breath. "…you are very clearly quite the gentleman. I would never have guessed. Up until a little over four centuries ago, the Dreyars were a family of sky pirates who frequently raided our cities. I never would have guessed. Plus, the Dreyars and the Heartfilias hated each other before Agalia disappeared."

"I see." Hisoka listened, and realized he could detect some smug amusement coming from Nikos. "What's so funny?"

Nikos shrugged, and Hisoka could very clearly see him smiling. "Just… seeing you two. It's sort of interesting, thinking about how the Heartfilias and Dreyars were back in the ancient days, and then seeing you two…"

"Well, we are very good friends," Nashi acknowledged.

"Right…" Nikos continued to emit waves of amusement, and Hisoka wondered what he thought was so funny. "Well, I'm going to bed now." He turned and headed up the stairs.

"Let's continue practicing tomorrow," Hisoka suggested to Nashi. "I think I'm also about ready to go to sleep."

Nashi nodded in agreement. "Goodnight." She threw herself onto an empty couch and was soon fully asleep. Hisoka found another empty couch and did the same.

* * *

Thomas looked over at Akane and William, chuckling to himself as he saw that the two had moved in their sleep, with William having her arms sort of wrapped around Akane, and curled up at his torso. Akane was lying on his side with his hand resting on William's head. Thomas silently wondered to himself how they had managed to do that in their sleep, as they had been completely separated to begin with. He sighed, and floated over to Emma, slowly shaking her awake.

"Wha…?" Emma's eyes slowly opened.

"Hey," Thomas greeted. "You up for the next watch?"

Emma slowly came to her senses, then sat up and looked around groggily.

"Sorry for not asking you ahead of time," Thomas apologized. "I forgot to ask who would take the next watch before you all went to sleep."

Emma sighed. "I guess so." She looked over at William and Akane, then covered her mouth, trying to contain her laughter. "Are those two at all aware of each other?"

Thomas shook his head. "I don't think so. They were separated at first. They shifted into that position in their sleep."

"I see. Well, I guess neither of them get next watch. I don't really have the heart to put an end to that."

"I don't think you'd be able to wake them up anyway," Thomas replied. "Akane normally sleeps a lot, and they both look pretty comfortable. Plus, we all missed two days of sleep."

"Yeah. I guess you're right. And yes. I will go ahead and take the next watch. You go ahead and get some sleep."

"Yeah. I will." They both looked over at the sleeping pair.

"What is it that Akane's afraid to tell us, exactly?" asked Emma.

"Well, if I told you, that would be betraying Akane," Thomas explained. "It's his secret to tell, so let him tell you when he's ready."

"I'm just wondering, like, what sort of thing," Emma replied. "Not anything specific."

Thomas looked over at Emma. "Well, basically, it's about his parents. When we went to Edolas, we found out that one of his parents was someone who not only has been known to cause incredible amounts of despair, but also shouldn't even be alive."

"Well, if it's their Edolas counterpart, then it's not even the same person, right?"

"That is true. Unfortunately, this is the genuine Earthland version we're talking about."

Emma's eyes widened. "Who is it?"

Thomas shook his head. "It's his decision whether you find out or not."

Emma raised an eyebrow. "Really? Because I already have my suspicions as to who it is."

"Then I've already said too much," replied Thomas. "Please respect his wish to keep it a secret."

"He smells like Nashi's scarf," Emma flatly put.

Thomas's eyes widened. "Really, now? Interesting coincidence, right?"

Emma's eyes narrowed. "Nashi's scarf is made of dragonscale. And not just the scales of any dragon."

"W-What dragon?"

"You know who, don't you?"

"Uh…" Thomas desperately looked for an excuse to change the subject.

"The black dragon of the apocalypse, Acnologia."

Thomas fell silent, staring incredulously at Emma.

Emma sighed. "Don't think that I'm going to think any less of Akane. He's my guildmate, and so far, he's made an incredibly good impression. It doesn't matter if you find out his dad was a dragon that tried to destroy the world when that happens. Besides…" She looked over at Akane and William, who were still cuddling, and still probably unaware that they were doing so. "…without him, Will would be dead. Will and Merlin would both be dead. You really think I would stop trusting him after that? Besides, they both trust him. And believe me, my siblings are quite intuitive."

Thomas nodded. "Actually, Merlin already knows as well."

"All the more reason," replied Emma. "And I'm certain the others will accept him, too."

"They'd better," Thomas retorted. "Because I'll protect that boy with my life. I may not seem like it at times, but I care about him."

* * *

Hisoka played a few notes on his symphonic lacrima, then set it on the table as it began to play an energetic reel on its own. He turned to Nashi. "Alright. Now try to come up with your own dance sequence to this music. Without magic, though. Remember, we're guests in someone else's incredibly expensive house. We don't want to pay for damages in currency we don't even have."

Nashi nodded, and closed her eyes, focusing on the music for a bit, and growing accustomed to the beat, syncopations and accent notes. Then she started bouncing up and down a bit to the tune, getting a feel for the music. Next, she began to move her arms and legs, quickly spreading that movement to her entire body, spinning, leaping, stepping and flowing around the room.

Hisoka nodded in approval. "Good. Now, keep doing that. I'm going to try and make a dance sequence that compliments yours." He watched Nashi, listened to the music, and tried to get a feel for Nashi's style. Then he began dancing in a manner that reflected Nashi's, making some movements that opposed hers, others that matched perfectly, and still others that were merely his own. Then he dropped to the floor, cutting off his own dancing, and stood up, offering a hand to Nashi, who saw him and flowed perfectly into taking his hand.

The two dragonslayers swung, stepped, and even twirled around the room. At one point, Hisoka even spread his wings, and they leapt up into the air, gliding for a distance and then coming back down, all in time with the music. Eventually, they came to a stop, and Hisoka picked up his symphonica, placing a hand over it to get the music to stop, and put it in his pocket. Nashi collapsed onto a couch, and Hisoka joined her.

"Nicely done," Hisoka approved. "I think you're ready to add magic to your dancing. We'll go outside to practice for a few days, and then we'll continue to move east."

Nashi nodded. "This was actually more fun than I thought. Thanks for teaching me."

Hisoka smiled back at his guildmate. "Yeah. Dancing is one of those activities that turn out to be more fun than people think. Actually, when I was asked to start learning to dance, I reacted almost exactly the same way you did."

Nashi gave him a funny look, then burst out laughing. "You?!"

"Yeah," Hisoka replied. "Surprising, but true."

"But you practically live and breathe dancing," Nashi roared. "The idea of you, not liking the idea of dancing… it's just…" she tried to continues speaking, but was overcome by a fit of laughter.

Hisoka sighed, giving a little huff of laughter himself. "I suppose it is kind of weird."

Nashi calmed down, and she leaned back on the couch, her eyes slowly closing. "I'm tired…"

Hisoka looked over at the grandfather clock on the opposite end of the room. "Yeah, it is pretty late…" he trailed off as he himself drifted into unconsciousness.

* * *

William's eyes opened. All she could see was red and a bit of white, which seemed to be the colors of whatever was pressed against her forehead. She turned her head, rubbing against the vest as she went.

"Just… want… sleep… more…" She looked up (or what would have been up if not for the fact that she was horizontally inclined), and saw Akane slowly opening his eyes. As he looked at her, they both suddenly realized what was going on, each making a small sound of surprise and rapidly pushing away from one another, sitting up and avoiding eye contact. They looked around and discovered that everyone else was watching them.

"About time," Elkhart huffed. "It's almost noon."

"H-How m-much of that did you s-see?!" William spluttered.

"Well, I took first watch," Thomas replied. "And you sort of curled up against him in your sleep. It's funny. You didn't even bother to unroll your sleeping bag. You just fell asleep next to him."

"Wha…?" Akane looked at William, confused.

"Plus, you rolled over to face her as you wrapped your arms around each other," Thomas added, turning to Akane. "It was actually quite cute."

"I took the second watch," Emma stated. "And after that was Elkhart."

"And then I went after him," Merlin added. "You were actually both like that the entire night."

"And the three hours after that when we were all up," Elkhart chimed in. "I do believe we can all agree that it was quite adorable?"

Thomas, Merlin and Emma nodded in agreement, and Akane and William's faces both turned red in embarrassment.

"Well, I think we're about ready to go." Elkhart jumped to his feet and picked up his sleeping bag, causing it to dematerialize. "Well, after some breakfast, maybe."

"Agreed." Emma rummaged through her camping bag. "Personally, I'm pretty hungry."

* * *

 **You know, upon writing this chapter, I did not expect Nashi to enjoy learning to dance as much as she did. Yes, even my own characters catch me off guard (again, sorry for what happened to Mystogan). Hope you enjoyed!**


	17. Baildagch Arc - Echoes of Time

"Well, thanks for the hospitality!" Nashi shouted back at Nikos as she and Hisoka headed off down the street.

"I was happy to have you," Nikos replied. "It was good to find out that the Heartfilias are still around after all these centuries. May your travels do you good!"

Hisoka stood and waited for Nashi to finish waving at Nikos, then turned and started walking as she ran to catch up with him. "Well, we have a few more days to practice, since he gave us enough provisions to get to the next major city."

Nashi nodded, and looked down at her feet as they continued walking, then back up at Hisoka. "Are you sure I can perform in front of an audience, though? I'm still making some mistakes, and it's my understanding that you'd been practicing for years when you first started."

"Don't worry about it," Hisoka reassured her. "You've already shown yourself to be incredible at improv. And you are an incredibly creative dancer. You'll be fine."

Nashi looked ahead, grinning in confidence. Hisoka could also hear her confidence levels going up in response to what he had said. "Right! I'm fired up!"

"There's the Nashi I know." They continued to head out of the city. "Well, it seems we're nearly there. About another week of traveling, I estimate."

Nashi nodded "We're making good progress. It seems we won't be back for the Games, unfortunately."

"I don't care," Hisoka replied. "This is more important."

"Thanks for caring," Nashi replied. "But I still feel bad for spoiling your chance to do this thing that excited you."

"Don't," Hisoka reassured. "We can always do it next year."

Nashi nodded, then looked ahead. Her eyes widened in surprise.

Hisoka looked, and saw an elderly man hobbling towards them. He appeared to be gravely injured as he fell to the ground. Hisoka ran over, water already beginning to engulf his hands in water as he prepared his healing magic. Nashi ran after him as he knelt down and placed his hands over the most major cuts and bruises. Then, as those sealed up, he moved on to the more minor ones. "Oi! Are you alright?"

The man's eyes fluttered open. He groaned in pain and sat up, muttering something in a language Hisoka couldn't understand.

Hisoka pulled some food out of his bag and handed it to the man, who hungrily devoured it. When he was finished, he looked over at Nashi, and his eyes widened. "I find new holder," he declared, rolling up his sleeve and revealing twelve characters tattooed in a ring around his right arm, with a solid light yellow line above them (closer to the elbow) and another line split equally into four colors – green, red, white and blue. "Come." He beckoned for Nashi to come closer.

"Hold it," Hisoka commanded. "What do you plan to do to her?"

The man looked back at Hisoka, and indicated the symbols on his arm. "I find new holder." He pointed at Nashi. "Girl I see in vision. New holder."

"New holder of what?" asked Nashi.

The man indicated the tattoos again. "Star spirits. Not safe for me. Must find new holder." He pointed at Nashi. "You. Girl I see in vision. You are perfect holder. Come." Once again, he beckoned for Nashi to come over. This time, she did so and knelt before the old man. "Your arm," the man directed. Nashi held out her right arm, and the man grabbed it with his right hand, whispering in that same language Hisoka couldn't understand. Both their arms slowly began to glow brighter and brighter, even outshining the sun, at which point Hisoka had to look away. Then the light subsided and Hisoka looked back.

The tattoos on the old man's arm were gone. Well, not gone, just no longer on his arm. They now existed about two-thirds of the way up Nashi's forearm. The old man continued to hold Nashi's arm, and with his other hand, pointed out the symbols and their meaning.

"Rat," the man said, pointing at the first one. Then he pointed at the second one. "Ox." He went to the next one. "Tiger." He continued until he had gone over all twelve. "Rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog, pig."

"Uh, what?" Nashi asked, confused.

The man sighed and indicated the sky. "Star spirits. They grant powers." He pointed out each character on Nashi's arm again. "Rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog, pig. You are sky spirit mage. You use these." He took his cane and stood up, looking back at Hisoka. "Thank you. You save me. I go now." He went off.

"Uh, bye?" Hisoka sort of half-waved at the man, then scooted over to Nashi, taking a closer look at the new tattoos on her arm. "Any idea what he just gave you?"

Nashi shook her head. "Some sort of celestial spirit thing. I can sense the magic emanating from it. But I don't know anything beyond that. Do you have any ideas?"

Hisoka shrugged. "He wasn't very good at speaking West Common, so I wasn't able to interpret much. Maybe Elkhart knows something?"

Nashi shrugged and stood up, immediately followed by Hisoka. "We'll try to figure it out later. Let's keep going."

* * *

Henri and Erza stared at the letter, wide-eyed.

"What is it?" Minerva asked.

"Those idiots." Henri crumpled the letter in annoyance.

"What?" asked Ichiya.

"It seems that all of Dragon King has headed east," Erza explained, "as well as Elkhart. Apparently Mirajane overheard them talk about going on the five hundred-year quest."

Jura's eyes widened in surprise, a reaction that hadn't been seen on the old man since Erza challenged one hundred monsters in the X791 Grand Magic Games. "That's suicide! Fairy Tail's strongest team has been at it for five years and haven't made any progress!"

"Well, from what I've heard, they've at least prevented the Baildagch from advancing even further," Kagura put in. "Maybe this is the push we need to get them to back off."

"They're not even S-class…" Henri grumbled.

"But they are dragonslayers," Kagura argued. "And from what I've heard, that's exactly what the resistance needs at the moment."

"What do you mean?" inquired Erza.

"I sent Milliana and Risley over to investigate," Kagura explained. "They returned two months later with reports of dragons."

"Dragons?" Erza looked at Kagura in surprise and concern, followed by all of the other guild masters. "They have dragons?"

Kagura nodded. "While it was irrational of them to head off with no grasp of what they were getting themselves into, they may be our only hope. I'm sorry, Erza, but for now, we have to trust them."

* * *

"Well, thanks to all the smells in this city, we seem to have lost them."

Merlin looked over at William, who, after some convincing, was once again riding on Akane's back. "Well, we can't be too far behind. They were here at least up until five days ago." He looked around and saw what looked like a guild building. "We could ask around. Let's start over there." He walked into the building, while the others exchanged glances and followed him.

"Are you sure they understand West Common?" Elkhart asked.

"Don't worry," Merlin reassured. "I know that one does." He pointed to a tall man with short, black hair and a neatly trimmed beard. "Will and I ran into him a few times over the years. Oi, Nikos!"

Nikos turned his head toward Merlin and strode over to him. "Yes?"

"You didn't see a couple of wizards with these guildmarks pass through here a few days ago by any chance, have you?" He indicated his Dragon King guildmark.

"Actually, I have," Nikos replied. "They stayed at my house for about a week, and then set off three days ago. I can show you which way they went, if you like."

"We would like that," Elkhart confirmed.

"Follow me." Nikos headed through the guild doors, and the others followed him. He led them eastward across town, up to the town border.

"This is where they exited the city," Nikos explained. "I hope you find them soon. Based on where they told me they were headed, they will need all the help they can get."

Elkhart nodded. "That's exactly why we're going after them," Elkhart replied, "so they don't get themselves killed."

"And good luck with that," Nikos concurred. "In the meantime, I will be returning to my guild." He turned and headed back into the town.

William got down from Akane and knelt, lowering her face near the ground. "Well, he's right. Their scent is about three days old."

"I say we fly the rest of the way," Akane suggested. "That way we'll catch up to them by this evening."

"I agree," Elkhart replied. "We want to catch them before they reach the battlefield. And if they left this town three days ago, they should be in the next town right about now."

"Then let's go," Thomas replied, latching onto Merlin's back. "We have no time to lose."

* * *

Hisoka and Nashi stood back to back. Then they both gave their left hand a wave. Some water from a nearby fountain shot over to Hisoka's hand, while flames engulfed Nashi's. Then both elements shot into the air, forming spiraling trails around one another. Then both wizards began dancing, the trails of fire and water swirling around in intricate patterns. The audience cheered, and somebody began playing a flute. Hisoka and Nashi paused, listening to the music for a few seconds, then began dancing in time with it.

Hisoka leaped into the air, then spun to a stop, holding his hand out to Nashi. Nashi took it, and they began swinging, sidestepping, and twirling around the space the audience had allowed them, their respective elements continuing to swirl about to match their movements. Then they separated, and continued dancing independently, doing their best to match each other's movements. They leaped, spun, stepped, and eventually both landed on in a kneeling position, bowing to the audience and earning themselves a thunderous applause. Some of them threw money into the bucket that they had placed in the center.

"Well, this is surprising. I didn't realize either of you danced."

Hisoka and Nashi looked up and saw Akane, Elkhart, Emma, Merlin, Thomas and William standing before them.

"Intriguing," Merlin continued as Hisoka and Nashi both stood up.

Hisoka signaled to the audience that the performance was over, and as they cleared out, he turned back to the others. "What are you doing here?" he asked.

"I would think it was obvious," Elkhart replied. "Do you really think we'd let you two go on the five hundred-year quest on your own?"

"There's no way you're stopping us," Nashi glowered. "We've already gotten this far."

"We understand," replied Akane. "And after some convincing from Emma, we've decided that the best course of action is to assist you."

Nashi and Hisoka both looked at Akane in surprise. "Seriously?" Nashi implored. "You're here… to help us?"

William smiled and nodded.

"Whether or not you were to survive this, it would have been way cooler than anything I could experience back at home," Emma explained. "Did you really think I'd let you get away with that?"

Hisoka sighed. "Your rivalry is a strange one."

"But anyway, yeah," Akane confirmed. "We're here to help you guys."

"You know, that's actually a good thing," Hisoka recalled. "It seems we'll be dealing with dragons."

Elkhart's eyes widened. "Dragons?"

Hisoka nodded. "We captured a scout from the invading forces about three weeks ago. He said they had dragons, and I didn't detect any deceitful intent."

"Oh, yeah," Elkhart remembered. "We've been meaning to ask you about that. Why did you let that guy go?"

Hisoka tilted his head in confusion. "How did you know about that?"

"I picked up his scent," William explained. "You seemed to part ways after a bit of a skirmish."

"Well, Hisoka scared him off," Nashi explained. "I believe he was planning to spy on Fairy Tail to prepare for an attack."

Elkhart's eyes widened. "Then why did you let him go?!"

"I scared him off," Hisoka explained. "And I made sure he wasn't lying when he said he would leave Fairy Tail alone. It's fine."

"And how did you make sure?"

"I have sensitive ears. I can pick up brainwaves. Elkhart, I promise that I would never do anything to endanger Fairy Tail."

Elkhart glared at Hisoka. "You'd better not. Fairy Tail is my home. My family. And… wait… what just happened here?"

Hisoka gave Elkhart a confused look, then looked around and realized that time had frozen again. He looked incredulously at Elkhart. "More importantly, how are you still moving?"

"You know about this?"

"Well, he kind of caused it," a voice behind Hisoka replied. They both turned to see Ultear walking towards them.

"Who is that?" asked Elkhart.

"That would be Ultear Milkovich," Hisoka replied.

"Ultear? Didn't she die? And more importantly, you caused this?"

"Not on purpose," Hisoka explained. "Apparently, something I do in the future is going to send echoes through time, like this one, and Ultear simply exists within these moments of frozen time."

"Something you do in the future?" Elkhart inquired. "What is it?"

Hisoka shrugged. "My guess is as good as yours. What I'm curious about is how you're able to move."

"I'm honestly not sure," Elkhart admitted. "My relativity magic may prevent my timeline from getting frozen, but that's just a possibility." He looked around. "To be fair, light and air seem to move freely in frozen time, for some reason. I wouldn't be surprised if my magic let me do that as well."

"That is a good point," Hisoka acknowledged.

"Well, honestly, that seems to be the most logical explanation," Ultear said. "And remember what I said, Hisoka. Don't test your luck." Ultear disappeared, and time resumed.

Elkhart looked around, deciding to pretend nothing happened. "Well, anyway, we're all together now. Shall we continue onward?"

"I say we grab something to eat first," Akane suggested. "I'm starving."

"Well, we got plenty of money from that performance," Nashi beamed, holding up the bucket. Then she turned to Hisoka. "What do you say we spend our hard-earned money?"

"Fine by me," Hisoka agreed. He looked around. "What about that restaurant over there?" He pointed at a building that smelled of various recognizable and unrecognizable foods.

"I say yes," Merlin agreed.

"Sure," Elkhart chimed in.

"As long as it's food," Thomas conceded.

They all headed over to the restaurant. It appeared to have illustrations of the various menu items.

"Let's see…" Merlin scrutinized the menu.

"I did study a bit of East Common a few years back," William mentioned. "Let me see. Winged fish?! They have winged fish?"

"Seriously?!" Hisoka exclaimed.

"I know, right?" Elkhart agreed. "Who would put such a disgusting thing on their menu?"

Hisoka looked at Elkhart, confused. "What do you mean? Winged fish are amazing!"

All heads turned towards Hisoka.

"Did I say something wrong?"

"Uh… have you ever tasted winged fish?" asked Merlin. "Because they're pretty gross."

"As a matter of fact, I have," Hisoka retorted. "And they're my favorite."

"Riiiight…" Nashi turned back to the menu. "You can have winged fish if you like. There's no way any of us are eating that."

William tried her best to translate the menu, and everyone ordered accordingly. Not surprisingly, Hisoka was the only one who ordered winged fish.

Suddenly, Merlin noticed Nashi's right arm. "Where did you get those tattoos?" he asked.

"Some old man gave them to me," Nashi explained. "He said something about a 'new holder' and how I was the perfect successor or something, and he had these tattoos on his arm, which he somehow transferred onto my arm."

Merlin stared at the characters encircling Nashi's arm. "Nashi, you have obtained something that only one celestial spirit mage in the world may have at a time."

Nashi looked down at the tattoos, then up at Merlin. "You know something about it?"

Merlin nodded. "That's the power of the Eastern Zodiac."

Nashi grinned as she realized she had a new and exciting power. "What can I do with it, then?"

"Mostly physical enhancements," Elkhart explained. "At the moment, you probably only have enough power to sustain one of them at a time. But if you become powerful enough, you can sustain up to three."

"So, is it in any way possible to sustain more than that?"

Merlin shook his head. "Each power in the Eastern Zodiac is associated with a specific element. You can only call on the powers from one element at a time. Trying to work with two elements at a time isn't even a matter of magical power. They will simply refuse to work at the same time."

"Intriguing," Hisoka noted. "I expected Elkhart to know about this sort of thing."

Elkhart shrugged. "Merlin and William are the ones who've been to this area of the world before."

Merlin nodded. "I don't really know that much about the Eastern Zodiac, but I can teach you what I do know about how to use them."

"However," Elkhart added, "being a mage of study, I am interested in learning more about this magic."

"Then you could watch my lessons," Merlin suggested. "I'm completely open to that."

Elkhart nodded and smiled. "That would be nice."

Akane leaned over to Hisoka. "You know, I've never actually tried winged fish. You think I could have a taste?"

"Sure," Hisoka replied through a mouthful. He cut off a piece with his fork, then gave it to Akane, who put it in his mouth and started chewing. His face turned a bit disappointed as he swallowed. "Well, it's not super-disgusting, but it's also not that good."

Hisoka shrugged. "We all have different tastes."

"And most of us think it _is_ super-disgusting," William retorted.

"You just need a more refined palate," Hisoka asserted.

"Says the guy who won't touch tomatoes," Nashi argued.

"Oh, shut up," Hisoka shot back. "Fine. I have weird tastes."

"That you do," Elkhart agreed. "That you do."

Hisoka finished off his food, saw that the others were done, and stood up. "Well, shall we get going?"

"I think that would be in our best interests," Thomas agreed. The others nodded and stood up.

They all headed out of the restaurant, then continued out of the city.

Elkhart started up a telepathic link with Hisoka. _So what is the deal with Ultear? I thought she was dead._

 _Well, yes,_ Hisoka agreed. _She died twenty-one years ago. However, the time that she lost ended up in the spaces between moments. Did you not hear about how Dimaria was defeated?_

 _Come to think of it, no,_ Elkhart admitted. _I study magic more than I study past battles._

 _Well, anyway, Dimaria had the ability to freeze time, and she was fighting Wendy and Charle, and then Ultear showed up and gave Wendy a special ability. I can't remember what it was, though. Anyway, basically, Ultear now lives within moments of frozen time._

 _I see._

A roar sounded ahead of the team, startling everyone. They looked over to see a large blue dragon streaking towards them, with a human riding on its back.

"No way…" Hisoka marveled, his eyes widening. "They're incredibly rare. I never thought I'd see one for myself."

"What are you talking about?" Nashi asked. "I though you grew up with a dragon."

"Not a dragon," Hisoka corrected. "A dragon _rider_. Very few dragons are willing to let humans ride them like that. The dragon would have had to have been raised from a hatchling."

"We don't have time for marveling," Elkhart warned. "That's an enemy we have to fight."

Hisoka nodded and glanced over at Akane. He was surprised to see he had let go of William, who was lucky enough to land on her feet, and was now looking at Akane as well. Akane just stood there, frozen in terror, his eyes wide as his worst memories began to resurface.

William went around to face Akane. "Oi! Akane, are you alright?!" She placed a hand on his shoulder.

"No…" Akane shook his head, continuing to stare at the dragon. "No, no, no! Not again! Not like this!"

"Pull yourself together, Akane!" Merlin shouted, shaking and sweating at the sight before them. "I know it was a bad experience, but to stop it from happening again, we have to fight! Crap…" He stared down at his own clammy hands, realizing he wasn't much better off.

"You're right…" Akane suddenly bent down and scooped up William in his arms, startling her, and carried her to a safe distance. "I'll protect Will! You guys attack!"

Hisoka sighed. "Well, we're certainly not talking him out of that decision. Elkhart, you attack the rider, since he's not resistant to your magic. The rest of us will go for the dragon!"

Elkhart nodded. "Meteor!" He shot up towards the rider. Then his form redshifted from the others' point of view, and he slammed into the rider with far greater force then his speed suggested. Confused, the dragon launched its breath weapon at the dragonslayers, spewing out a torrent of lightning. Nashi, Emma and Merlin dodged, while Hisoka stood there, taking the full brunt of the attack.

"Hisoka!" Nashi shouted as the lightning engulfed him. Then her eyes widened as the lightning cleared and Hisoka was still alive and standing… well… kneeling. He had dropped to one knee and was breathing heavily.

"Learn to behave like your element, and you will gain some of its properties," Hisoka panted. "I didn't do all that training for nothing." He staggered to his feet, sparks of electricity arcing across his body. "Water conducts electricity without having much of an effect." He sprouted his wings and flew towards the dragon. "I learned this one from Nashi. Kawatatsu no Kenkaku!" Water condensed around his body, spiraling into a point on his head, and he slammed into the dragon's belly with intense force, leaving a visible wound from the pressurized water.

Meanwhile, the rider shot into the ground, and Elkhart landed softly, deactivating his meteor. "Let's see your powers, shall we?"

"Tetsuryuukon!" Emma extended her fist at the dragon, and a long steel pole extended from her arm, slamming into the dragon.

Merlin followed up on Emma's attack by running up the steel pole she had created. "Tetsuryuuken!" Both his arms turned into sword blades with spinning teeth, and he slashed at the dragon, causing it to double back in pain. As Merlin fell, Thomas caught him, floating gently to the ground.

Nashi dashed to a point underneath the dragon, then looked straight up. "Karyuu no Houkou!" She launched a torrent of flames that engulfed the dragon, causing it to roar in pain. Hisoka dropped to the ground next to Nashi as she did this, and marveled as the dragon looked heavily injured.

"Hisoka, can you carry me directly over top of the dragon?" Nashi requested.

"What are you planning to do?" asked Hisoka.

"Send it to the ground," replied Nashi.

Hisoka smiled. "Good thinking." He grabbed Nashi around the waist, then shot up into the air, swerving around the dragon as he did so.

"Now, push me down with your feet," Nashi requested. "And I'll push off at the same time."

"Right!" Hisoka placed his feet against Nashi's, bending his knees as he did so, and let go, quickly pushing off. Nashi also pushed off, and as she shot towards the dragon, flames started shooting from her feet, providing extra thrust.

"Karyuu no Houkou!" Once again, Nashi released her breath weapon, this time pushing the dragon downward so that it slammed into the ground. Nashi then used her flames to slow her own fall, tumbling to the ground.

"Kawatatsu no Juatsukiri!" Hisoka extended both arms towards the dragon, and a drill of pressurized water slammed into the dragon, killing it.

The rider saw this, tears forming in his eyes, and tried to run past Elkhart.

"Oh, no you don't!" Lightning formed on Elkhart's hand, and he grabbed the boy's head, electrocuting and killing him. He then stared at his hand as the boy dropped to the groujnd. "What have I done…?"

"You just killed a man," Merlin replied. "Welcome to the warzone."

Elkhart's eyes widened. "I… I understand. It's just…" He sank to his knees.

Merlin ran over to Elkhart. "You okay?"

Elkhart nodded. "I just need a moment to process this."

"Understandable," Hisoka replied. "I just used my power to slay a dragon for the first time. And while I can keep moving while I process it, I understand that others really do need to take their time." He headed over to where Akane had taken William.

"You guys ready?" he asked.

William nodded, while Akane stared wide-eyed at the dragon. "Y-Yeah. I guess so." They both stood up, and William hopped onto Akane's back.

Hisoka looked over at Elkhart, who was now being comforted by Merlin. "Well, it seems we've officially entered the war. As soon as Elkhart's ready, we continue moving."

* * *

 **I don't really have much to say about this chapter, but tell me what you think of Nashi's new power (okay, to be fair, you have yet to see what it can do, but what do you think of the concept?). Oh, and I know it was Chelia and not Wendy who got Third Origin. There's a reason I wrote it the way I did, and it will be explained. Hope you enjoyed!**


	18. Baildagch Arc - Five Years

"You alright?"

Elkhart looked up at Merlin in response to his question.

"Elkhart, listen. I'm also shaken up by the fact that we just killed someone, but we have to go…"

"You didn't kill him," Elkhart snapped. "I did. And he was my age! The fact that I was able to take him out with a single strike… that I could just charge up my hand and touch someone, and they'd just… well, it's not even entirely what I just did." Tears formed in Elkhart's eyes. "Is this what everyone goes through when fighting a war? If this is what everyone experiences when killing… why do we have tens of thousands of people going through this? This is awful!"

"Elkhart…"

"I can understand why you're so calm about this," Elkhart whispered, trembling. "You already experienced it, didn't you?"

Merlin looked at Elkhart, confused.

"When William got crushed," Elkhart continued. "That moment when you were certain she had been killed, and you couldn't do a thing about it…"

"I suppose that's true," Merlin admitted. "But honestly, seeing a family member die is much worse than seeing a stranger die."

"Then I dread how I would take to losing someone like a family member." Elkhart stood up shakily, barely able to lift his legs. The rest of the team headed over to them, and Hisoka stepped up close, placing a hand on the young wizard's shoulder. Instantly, Elkhart's heart rate slowed, and a sense of calm slowly washed over him. Elkhart put his hand on Hisoka's hand in response, and his face lightened. Then he removed Hisoka's hand. "You may have a soothing effect on people," he pointed out, "but you haven't changed a bit of what's on my mind. I meant what I said just there. If that was how I felt about killing a stranger, there's no way I'm letting any of you guys go." _Especially you,_ he projected privately to Hisoka. _Whatever you do in the future that sends those ripples through time, it could very well mark the end of your life._

 _I understand,_ Hisoka replied. _But don't get yourself killed in the process, okay? We care about you, too._

"It's good that you feel that way," Merlin reassured. "It's better than simply being traumatized, or going crazy."

"Enough, Merlin," William commanded. "He's been through plenty. We don't need you scaring him."

"I'm fine," replied Elkhart, getting to his feet. "Let's go."

* * *

Hisoka's ears perked up. "You guys hear that?" he asked.

The only response was from Nashi. "You have the most sensitive hearing out of all of us," she pointed out. "The rest of us probably won't be hearing it for a while. What exactly are you hearing?"

"Fighting," Hisoka replied. "Thousands of people fighting with both magic and weapons."

"So we're here?" inquired Akane.

Hisoka nodded. "Well, we'll be there in less than an hour, anyway. Come on." He headed in the direction of the sound, and the others followed him. Through the woods.

The team continued until they reached a clearing, and everyone marveled at the sight. Cascades of magical attacks of all shapes, sizes and colors turned the place into a fireworks display, with people clashing blades, fists, and whatever magical tools they happened to have.

"I wonder where my parents are," Nashi speculated.

"Hard saying," replied William. "We can't exactly track them by smell through all this."

Hisoka threw up a water shield as a stray blast of purgatory energy streaked towards them. "And even if we could track someone through this mess, we'd be too busy making sure we don't get killed."

They wandered around, making sure to keep their distance from the front line. Occasionally another stray attack would come their way, and somebody would block it, or they'd all dodge. Eventually, they made it to the main camp.

"Hold on," Elkhart commanded as somebody tapped his shoulder. The others stopped, and Elkhart turned to face the short-haired, middle-aged woman who had gotten his attention. "What do you want?"

The woman looked around at the group. "Did Fairy Tail really send more mercenaries?" she asked.

"Define 'mercenaries'," Elkhart requested. "We came here of our own accord."

"I see," the woman acknowledged. "I'm General Handan Fyodorov." She held out a hand, and Elkhart shook it. "I take it you're here to help?"

"Yeah," Akane replied. "We're here to help."

"Good," Fyodorov approved. "Are any of you dragonslayers, by any chance?"

Everyone except Thomas and Elkhart raised a hand.

The general's eyes briefly widened in surprise. Then she collected herself. "That's good. We're in dire need of dragonslayers, since the Baildagch recently released some dragons."

"Yeah, we know," Hisoka replied. "We were told a few weeks ago, and we even fought one just a few hours ago. Speaking of which…" He looked around the camp. "Do you have anywhere that we can rest?"

"Indeed we do," the general replied. She pointed over to a clearing that hadn't been taken up by a tent or campfire or anything. "We can send for more tents if need be."

"Thanks." Elkhart extended a hand, and a rolled-up tent materialized in his hand. "I already have my own tent, so it's just the others who need one."

The general nodded. "Understood. Rest up and then report back to my tent. I will be in there." She pointed to another tent further away from the clearing. "Feel free to take your time." She headed off to some people who appeared to be managing supplies and said something to them. They nodded, walked into what the others guessed was a supplies tent, then stepped out with three large, rolled-up tents and headed for the clearing. The team followed them as they set up the tents in an orderly fashion, leaving room for Elkhart to set up his tent, and looked around, admiring their handiwork.

"Each one is made for two," one of the supplies managers explained. "But your cat should easily fit in with two of you."

"I'm not 'their' cat," Thomas retorted, in a tone that reminded Hisoka of Henri.

Hisoka began to wonder what Henri was thinking back at home. She had probably gotten wind by now of what they were doing. Would she head after them? No. Probably not. She would probably get help from some more powerful wizards such as Erza. Erza probably also knew, and was almost definitely worried that her son had gone off on the five hundred-year quest. Maybe Erza's reaction would be similar to the Galuna Island story he had read about.

"Whatever," the supplies manager replied, breaking Hisoka out of his train of thought. "You're a cat, and you're their companion. That's what I meant." He walked off with his coworker.

Elkhart went over to the empty area. "Well, I'll let you guys work out where you sleep." He began setting up his own tent.

Emma strode over to the nearest tent. "Dibs on this one."

"In that case, there's no way _I'm_ sleeping in that one," Nashi glowered.

"Good," Emma agreed.

William sighed. "I'll sleep with Emma." Akane put her down and she walked towards the tent.

Emma's hostile expression towards Nashi turned into a smile at William. "Alright, then. You sure you don't want to sleep with Akane?"

William's face flushed a bit, and Hisoka heard emotions he couldn't quite identify – flustered? With a bit of embarrassment? He wasn't certain. "Why would I want to sleep with Akane?!"

"I dunno. You seemed to enjoy it the other day, that's all."

"I didn't even mean to! I just shifted in my sleep."

"What are you guys talking about?" asked Nashi.

"We caught those two cuddling the other night," Emma explained.

"We weren't cuddling!" Akane and William simultaneously exclaimed.

"Will's arms were wrapped around Akane, and Akane had his hand on her head," Emma continued. "It was actually kind of cute."

William glared at her sister. "I'm sleeping with you, okay?"

"Fine. I was just teasing." Emma headed into their tent. "Come on, little sister."

"I have a name."

"Whatever, Will," Emma replied from inside. "You're also my little sister."

"I guess Akane and I have a tent together?" Hisoka suggested.

"I have no complaints," Akane replied.

"I do," Merlin replied. "That leaves me to deal with Nashi's snoring."

"I don't snore!" Nashi retorted.

"Yes, you do," Merlin argued. "I've done a few jobs with you, and I never got enough sleep until I got home."

"I've never had a problem with her snoring," Hisoka put in.

"Then why don't you sleep with her?"

"To be fair, we've been sleeping together for this entire trip," Nashi pointed out. "I don't see why you would suddenly have a problem with it."

"Okay, that is fair," Hisoka conceded. He turned to Merlin. "So I guess you and Akane will be sleeping together?"

"Works for me," Akane agreed.

Merlin nodded. "Much better."

"And I'll sleep with Merlin and Akane," Thomas decided.

Hisoka nodded stepped into his tent. It was relatively barren. Luckily, Nikos had lent him a sleeping bag, which he then rolled out and collapsed on top of, closing his eyes and drifting out of consciousness.

* * *

Nashi woke up and looked around the tent. Hisoka had left, but his scent was still fresh. She got up, blinked a few times, then staggered groggily out of the tent. The sun appeared to be just now rising, which indicated that they had been sleeping around twelve hours. She looked over and saw Hisoka, Merlin, William and Akane sitting around having a conversation.

"Where are the others?" Nashi asked.

"Emma left to talk to the general," Merlin replied. "Thomas and Elkhart are both still asleep."

Nashi nodded in understanding and sat down with them. "So, has anyone seen my parents or the others?"

Hisoka shook his head. "The general said they were sleeping about a kilometer from here."

"I see."

"And they are currently in the middle of battle," Akane added.

Nashi jumped to her feet. "Well, thanks. I'm going to talk to the general now." She headed for the general's tent.

Hisoka went after her. "You're not going into battle alone. I'm coming with you."

Nashi shrugged. "Fine by me." They went over to General Fyodorov's tent and stepped inside.

"So, Nashi, right?" Fyodorov checked. "And Hisoka?"

Nashi and Hisoka nodded.

"I see." The general waved off Emma, who headed out of the tent. She turned to Nashi. "I heard you're Natsu and Lucy's daughter."

"That's right," Nashi confirmed.

"Well, if I'd known that earlier, I would have told them before they headed to the front line." She looked down at what looked like a map of the battlefield. "Let's see… I sent Gildarts and Gray over here…" She pointed to a spot on the map. "And the Dragons are mostly showing up over here, where I sent Natsu, Lucy, Wendy, Happy and Charle. I want you guys over there as well, since most of you are Dragonslayers. I might ask your cat to go with you has well, to assist in aerial combat…"

"No need," Hisoka reassured. "I can fly."

"You can? Well, I'm still going to send Thomas over with you, once he's ready." Fyodorov eyed Nashi's right arm. "And I think I'm going to have Elkhart go over here, where we need more powerful wizards." She pointed to an area somewhere between where she had sent Gray and Gildarts and where she had sent the rest of team Natsu. "And actually, we'll want Akane over where Gray and Gildarts are."

"I will have you know that William is crippled, so she shouldn't be fighting directly," Nashi pointed out.

"I am well aware. Emma told me. I'm having her help with setting up defenses. I've been told of her experience with rune magic, and I believe that would be useful in our given situation. She will be going with Elkhart."

Hisoka nodded. "Anything else?"

The general shook her head. "That's all. Tell the others, get some breakfast and then head out there."

As they walked out of the general's tent and back towards their area, Nashi turned to Hisoka. "It seems like you're a bit overly protective."

"I guess so," Hisoka admitted. "I'm just a bit worried of what's to come, and the fact that we're about to fight in a war that was labeled as a five hundred-year quest isn't helping."

"I mean, I guess that makes sense. And I guess finding out what happened to your home continent wasn't too helpful either. I'll be fine, okay?"

"Yeah. And you're right. That may very well have been what started it." _Plus, you haven't even heard the full story._ Hisoka thought back to the message Soren had sent him, and wondered how much time was left. He still needed to become more powerful. Maybe this war would help? It had been part of the reason for wanting to be in the Grand Magic Games, but maybe fighting in an actual war would prepare him better.

"I think I'm going to get some bandages for my arm," Nashi decided, changing the subject. "That old man back there made it sound like there were some people who'd kill for these markings." She indicated the Eastern Zodiac symbols on her arm. "And they really have no reason to be exposed if I haven't figured out how to use them."

Hisoka nodded. "Makes sense. And bandages would be the least conspicuous thing that I can think of. Let's take care of that after breakfast." They headed back to where Emma, Merlin, William, Akane and Thomas were already eating breakfast and sat down.

"So what's the plan?" Merlin asked. "I assume the general told you?"

Hisoka nodded. "All of us except Akane, William and Elkhart will be fighting over on the south end. William will be helping with defenses near the middle, along with Elkhart, who'll be fighting over there. Akane, she wants you joining Gray and Gildarts on the north end."

"Good to know," Elkhart acknowledged, startling everyone with his sudden appearance.

"Do you have teleportation magic or something?" Akane asked.

Elkhart shook his head. "I seem to have some sort of natural stealth. So, I'm fighting in the central area, am I?"

"That would be correct," confirmed Hisoka. "We're all going to eat, take some time to digest, and then head out."

Elkhart sighed as he sat down and grabbed some of the eggs and bacon that the others had prepared. "It's honestly quite incredible that we went from one of us wanting to visit their parents to all of us being here to fight dragons."

"Yeah," Hisoka agreed. "It's funny how these things work out."

"Mm." Elkhart finished up his breakfast and stood up. "You ready to go, William?"

"Yup!" William slowly stood up, her legs shaking as she placed a hand on Akane's shoulder for support. Then the shaking stopped. "I can walk that distance. You don't have to carry me."

Elkhart nodded. "Let's go." The two of them headed for the front lines.

Nashi stood up. "Well, I think I'll be getting my arm bandaged up, and then we'll head to our places."

Hisoka nodded.

* * *

"Loke!" Lucy shouted as her most powerful celestial spirit dematerialized. The dragon had slashed through Loke like butter, leaving him too injured to stay in the human world. She gave a _tsk_ of frustration as Loke dematerialized, and she pulled out her magical whip, Fleuve d'ètoiles. She was about to make an attack, when suddenly, a fireball crashed into the dragon, sending it up in the air with the explosion. Lucy shielded her eyes.

The explosion died down, and Lucy uncovered her eyes. "Thank you, Na…" Her eyes widened as she saw her rescuer. "…tsu…"

Standing before her was not Natsu.

"What are you doing here?" Lucy demanded, her eyes narrowing in concern.

"Kawatatsu no Houkou!" A torrent of water blasted the dragon back a surprising distance, and a young man of around seventeen with long, blonde hair pulled back in a ponytail landed on the ground next to her rescuer. He wore a deep blue overcoat with silver trim and a silver Fairy Tail guildmark stitched onto the left side, as well as some other markings that made it look a bit more draconic. The girl's Fairy Tail guildmark on her right shoulder was surrounded by these same markings. The young man stared wide-eyed at Lucy. "I take it you're Lucy Heartfilia?"

Lucy glared at the young man. "You would be correct, but more importantly, I'd like to know what my daughter is doing here!"

The young man was taken aback by this tone. "Well, to be fair, I tried to stop her, but she seemed pretty deadset on meeting her parents." He held out a hand to shake. "I'm Hisoka. Hisoka Dreyar. It's nice to meet you."

Before Lucy could respond to this gesture, a roar sounded behind Hisoka and Nashi as the dragon recovered from Hisoka's attack.

"Raienryuu no Kenkaku!" An electrified halberd of flame slammed into the dragon before it could retaliate. The flames cleared, and a person leaped up from the dragon. "Raienryuu no Houkou!" He released a gigantic cone of electrified flames, leaving a partially burned, unmoving dragon body in his wake.

"Natsu Dragneel, I presume?" Hisoka greeted.

Natsu turned to face them. His eyes widened. "Nashi? What are you doing here?"

"I came here to visit you," Nashi replied.

"In case you hadn't noticed, we're in the middle of a war at the moment!" Natsu yelled. "Whatever. We'll talk about this later!"

"Agreed," Lucy replied. "You have a lot of explaining to do, young lady!"

"I look forward to it," Nashi retorted. They turned towards two more approaching dragons, both of which seemed to be fire dragons.

"Tetsuryuu no Houkou!"

"Kouryuu no Houkou!"

Two large torrents of microscopic metal shards engulfed one of the dragons, leaving that dragon heavily bleeding.

"Tenryuu no Yokugeki!" A blue-haired woman dropped from above and made wind-based slashes at the other dragon, stunning it. Nashi looked above to see two familiar cats flying down to meet them.

"Tetsuryuusou!"

"Kouryuusou!"

Merlin and Emma then proceeded to run a total of four metal lances through the bodies of both dragons, sending them to the ground, both heavily injured.

"Tetsuryuuken!"

"Kouryuuken!"

The two siblings ran towards the dragons, slashing them with arm blades and killing them. Then they looked around.

"There don't appear to be a lot of humans fighting around here," Emma commented.

"It's just not the kind of day for it," Wendy explained. "They seem to have decided to let the dragons do all the work for now. And to be fair, those dragons have done quite the number on us."

"Although, now that some more dragonslayers have arrived, they may send their fighters back out," Happy pointed out. He turned to Nashi. "Long time no see, Nashi."

"Hey, Happy," Nashi greeted back.

Lucy looked around. "Well, now that we've taken care of the nearby dragons, let's talk about what the hell you're doing here."

"Like I said," Nashi retorted. "I decided to come here because I wanted to see you."

"And what about you?" Lucy turned to Hisoka. "Dreyar, you say? What connection do you have to Laxus?"

"I'm his nephew," Hisoka replied. "Apparently, he had a brother who ended up in Edolas. Then I ended up back in Earthland."

"How? Travel between Earthland and Edolas was made impossible twenty-eight years ago."

"Long story," Hisoka replied. "Anyway, we're here, and according to General Fyodorov, we're needed, and we are therefore staying for a while."

"Right," Lucy turned back to Nashi, and everyone just stood there in awkward silence for about twenty seconds.

Thomas flew into the scene. "What exactly is going on here?" he asked.

"How about you three go somewhere safe that you can talk uninterrupted?" Wendy suggested, ignoring Thomas and pointing to Natsu, Lucy and Nashi. "The rest of us can fight on our own for a bit."

"Aye," agreed Happy. "This seems important."

* * *

"Well?" Lucy looked Nashi dead in the eye.

Nashi looked down at the tent floor.

"Please tell me you at least became S-class first?" Natsu implored.

Nashi shook her head. "Elkhart's the only S-class mage who came with us."

"Elkhart's here, too?"

Nashi nodded. "It's me, Elkhart, the Redfox siblings, two new human members and an exceed. You've already met one of the humans, as well as the cat."

Natsu looked straight at his daughter, a look of concern on his face. "Nashi, this is a five hundred-year quest. Not even being S-class is enough. You need special permission from the Magic Council, for crying out loud!"

"The Magic Council doesn't know crap about what I can do!" spat Nashi. "If I decide I'm going to go see my family, the Council can't do a thing about it."

"However," Lucy argued, "we're your parents, who asked you to stay at home, where it's safe."

"Oh, you are, are you?" Nashi snapped. "So, as my biological parents, you automatically know what's best for me."

"Well…" Natsu began.

"What do you know?!" Nashi interrupted. "Five years, okay?! Five years! You think that you can disappear for five years, and then know what's best for me, huh?"

"Nashi…" Lucy tried to assert.

"And those five years weren't all!" Nashi continued, completely ignoring what her parents were trying to say. "You aborted your first attempt at the hundred-year quest so that you could safely give birth to me. Sure. I'll give you credit for that. But then, as soon as I was old enough to eat solid food two years later, you went right back to it, and left the guild to take care of me. Then you came back again three years after that and gave me a brother. Now I ask you this: if you can't be there for one kid, what makes you think you can just have another?!"

Natsu and Lucy both fell silent as Nashi continued.

"You stayed another three years to take care of Hiromi, and Erza moved in permanently to replace Makarov as guild master. And then you left again! After that, for the next nine years, you visited maybe, _maybe_ ten times, the last time being when you told Hiromi he could join Sabertooth. That was the last time I saw you. And you have the nerve to try and decide what's best for me?!" Tears streamed down her face.

Lucy looked down at the ground, then back up at Nashi. Then she scooted over. "You're right, Nashi. We were away way too much. We weren't really thee for you, and come to think of it, our family is a bit too scattered for my liking." She wrapped her arms around Nashi – a mother's embrace, as Nashi buried her face into Lucy's shoulder. "So, in this moment, I would actually like to be there for you for a change."

"Agreed." Natsu scooted over to join them, wrapping his arms around both of them. "This family has been broken up into fragments for too long, and it's causing problems. I know this isn't the guild, but – welcome home, Nashi."

"Yeah," Nashi sobbed. "It's good to see you again."

Natsu and Lucy continued to embrace their daughter as she continued to cry onto Lucy's shoulder.

* * *

 **So, yeah. We now get to see Team Natsu in action once more, as well as a few other things. Hope you enjoyed!**


	19. Baildagch Arc - Old Friends

William planted her fist in the ground. "Kouryuushougai!" Steel bars shot out of the ground, forming a giant ring around herself and Elkhart, and then curving in towards the center to form a cage. Then William doubled over in pain, coughing up blood.

"Careful!" Elkhart warned. "You're not even supposed to be using dragonslayer magic."

"I'll be fine," William panted. "Now let's dragon-proof this thing." She slowly got to her feet, then pulled out her magic pen and headed over to the bars.

"Please," Elkhart begged. "You need to take care of yourself. Not only for your sake, but for Merlin's and everyone else's."

William finished a line of text, and a rune barrier popped up between two of the bars. "Don't worry. I will. I'm not an idiot."

"I know," Elkhart replied. He stepped out of the cage and looked out at the advancing enemy soldiers. Then he requipped a small bag and pulled out a few pulsing red lacrima. They began to glow as he charged them with his magic, and he proceeded to throw them out at the soldiers, making sure they fell in a line. At first, the colors around the lacrima seemed to shift into wavy patterns of blue and red. Then, as the soldiers tried to cross the line, and they all slowed down, turning first to blue, then shifting out of the visible spectrum. Elkhart could feel the x-rays hitting his body as he charged his hands with electricity, then released a barrage of lightning bolts at the soldiers he had slowed down, creating devastating effects as the speed of the bolts and the speed of light got closer together, and blasting the soldiers with incredible force in addition to the electric charge. Most of the soldiers dropped to the ground in a heap, with only a few left standing.

"Come and get me!" Elkhart shouted. "See what happens!"

The soldiers exchanged glances, then nervously continued to charge.

The lacrima from Elkhart's bag, as well as the bag itself, dematerialized as Elkhart returned them to his inventory. Then he summoned two elemental foci, one of them sprouting a blade of lightning, and the other forming one of fire. The view in front of him turned blue as he began to release his signature magic from himself, and he struck down the remaining soldiers one by one. A few of them tried to use purgatory magic, and one of them even seemed to be a fire dragonslayer, as well as others having various other magics. Some even managed to figure out what Elkhart's magic was doing with their senses, and managed to land some heavy blows on him. When Elkhart had finished, he was breathing heavily, and covered in various injuries.

"Okay, you took out those guys," William acknowledged. "Now get back in here in case we get a surprise attack."

Elkhart nodded and dove back into the cage, causing William's rune barriers to light up as he passed through them.

"What was that you just did with the guards?" William asked. "I've never seen you pull that off before."

"Remote charges," Elkhart explained. "You can charge them with your magic, then throw them to a remote point from which to use that magic. I invented them a few days before we left."

"Intriguing," William marveled. "So I could, for example, throw them while they're still tiny like that, and then have them turn into cannonballs in midair?"

"That's an interesting idea," Elkhart speculated. "I think I'll give you some of them." He once again summoned the bag and poured out a few of them into his hand, then offered them to William.

William shook her head. "No. They're yours."

"I don't expect to use this many of them any time soon," Elkhart argued, "and I can easily make more when we get back."

William sighed. "Fine." She took the marble-sized lacrima and put them in one of the pockets of her handbag. "It's weird that this place was unguarded."

"They did say they were in need of fighters. Maybe the others were just busy defending other areas." Elkhart looked outside of the cage. It appeared that those who had managed to regain consciousness were now fleeing. "Well, it seems we're safe for about an hour or two. I still can't believe I'm fighting in a war."

* * *

The dragon's talons slammed down on top of Gildarts, and he destroyed the ground beneath him, making sure his magic absorbed most of the impact. "Ready, Gray?!"

"Yeah!" Violet particles appeared around Gray as he activated his devilslayer magic, now wielding two icy swords of that same violet hue. He leaped up, slashing at the dragon's underside, then fell back to the ground as the dragon lifted its foot off of Gildarts, distracted by Gray's attack.

"Good job!" Gildarts turned to the ice mage with a grin.

"But I didn't hurt it," Gray replied. "We need Natsu or Wendy over here."

"Well, you didn't cause it any pain, but as you can see, you did cut through part of its hide."

Gray nodded as the dragon went for another attack. "But that's not enough. Where's a dragonslayer when you need one?"

"Shinkuryuu no Kenkaku!" A bolt of crimson energy streaked through the air and slammed into the dragon before it could take another swiped, sending it back several meters.

Gray stared as the energy cleared, revealing a young, red-haired man, sporting a Fairy Tail guildmark of the same color. His eyes narrowed in exasperation. "Okay, that timing was a bit too perfect."

The red-haired young man looked over at Gray. "What do you mean?" Then his eyes widened as he saw the man to whom he was speaking. "Wait… you're Gray Fullbuster, right?" He jogged over. "It's a pleasure to meet you! I'm Akane Skofnung." He held out his hand.

"Um… yeah." Gray took Akane's hand and shook it. "So, I take it you're new to the guild?"

Akane nodded. "I joined a little over three months ago." He turned as the dragon regained its bearings. Red, dragon-like wings sprouted from his back, and he shot into the air. "Shinkuryuuken!" A red ethereal blade formed around his arm, and he struck at the dragon, digging into its hide. "Man, it's harder when I'm the only dragonslayer at hand!"

The dragon chuckled, even though it appeared to be very clearly in pain. "Is that all you've got, human?"

"Not really," Akane replied. "Want me to go all out on you? The thing is, I've killed a dragon before, so you might not want that."

"If you survive this, maybe," the dragon mused. "Jiryuu no Houkou!" Sand blasted from the dragon's mouth, engulfing Akane and tearing up everything in its path.

Gray's eyes widened. "Is he…?"

Gildarts shook his head. "I can still sense his magic."

The dust cleared. A portion of the ground that was shaped like the path of the dragon's breath weapon had been carved out cleanly. Standing in the depression, covered in cuts, was Akane.

"You'll have to do better than that, dragon." A look of fury crossed Akane's face as the blade rematerialized on his arm. "The thing is, I'm not particularly fond of dragons, after what they did to a friend of mine."

"Oh?" The dragon's eyes showed a bit of curiosity. "You know, until you said that, I wasn't sure why you smelled so familiar. Even your eyes are similar, though not quite the same color."

"Shinkuryuuken!" Another crimson blade formed on Akane's other arm, and he sprouted his wings, speeding in for another attack.

"What connection do you have with Acnologia?"

* * *

Laxus looked around the farm. His eyes widened in surprise as he spotted a large metal capsule flattening part of the wheat field, with what looked like a parachute attached to it, now in a mess on the ground.

"What is this?"

"Yo, Onii-san!"

Laxus turned to see Aaron striding over to him from the house. "Aaron, what happened here?"

Aaron looked over at the capsule. "Honestly, not much. This capsule just fell out of this sky two days ago with a parachute. Then four people got out. I think three of them are your friends."

"Really? Who are they?"

"Well, again, the youngest one you probably don't know. Some kid with light blonde hair who introduced himself as Soren. Then there was a guy with green hair who called himself Freed. The other two looked horribly motion sick when they got out. They introduced themselves as Sting and Rogue."

Laxus's eyes widened. "Those are my friends, alright. In fact, I was looking for them. Where are they now?"

"Staying with the neighbors," Aaron replied.

"Thanks." Laxus jogged over to the other farm where Acnologia and Anna lived. He then stepped up to the front porch and knocked on the door.

The door opened, revealing Acnologia. "Laxus? I wasn't expecting to see you again."

"I heard some friends of mine were staying with you guys. Can I come in?"

Acnologia nodded and stepped aside. Laxus walked in and saw Freed, Sting and Rogue sitting on a couch, with Soren sitting in an armchair.

"Please tell me he's the Edolas version," Laxus groaned. "I really don't want to have to deal with him again."

"Do you mean Soren, or Acnologia?" Freed asked. "Because that is most certainly the Acnologia who we thought died two decades ago. The Soren that you see, however, is the Edolas version."

"I already know about Acnologia," Laxus replied. "We crossed paths a bit over a month ago."

Sting stood up from the couch. "Well, I guess we should be going, then? Let's meet up with the others."

Laxus sighed. "The others went back to Earthland three-and-a-half weeks ago. We're supposed to be meeting up with Evergreen and Bickslow in the capital in a week."

"So Akane left, huh? I was hoping I might see him one more time before he returned to Earthland."

"Sorry," Laxus apologized. "It turns out that fourth generation dragonslayers can't survive for very long in Edolas."

Acnologia's eyes widened in shock, and his body tensed up. "Are you telling me my son's dead?!"

"Don't worry," Laxus reassured him. "They made it back to Earthland in time."

"Thank goodness…" Acnologia relaxed his expression and his body. "Oh, and before you guys leave, can I actually talk to you about him."

"What is it?" Laxus asked.

Acnologia hesitated, then spoke. "Keep an eye on my son, will you? I don't want him to end up like I did."

Laxus nodded in understanding. "I think that as long as he has his friends, that is very unlikely to happen." He turned to the others. "You coming?"

* * *

The dragon didn't resist this time, and was sent sprawling by Akane's attack. Then it got up and saw the young dragonslayer standing there, frozen in shock.

"What?" Akane asked.

The dragon sat down and looked Akane square in the face. "You heard me perfectly fine. I asked about your connection with Acnologia. You smell way too much like him for there to not be a connection."

Akane's crimson swords dematerialized, and he dropped to the ground, his wings dematerializing.

"You sure you want to do that?" the dragon inquired. "You're leaving yourself wide open for an attack from me."

"Then why are you talking about it instead of attacking? Plus, you're also leaving yourself wide open."

The dragon gave Akane an intrigued look. "Well, you're sharper than you look. Are you going to answer my question?"

"First, I'd like you to answer a question of my own."

The dragon gave Akane a mildly annoyed look, then sighed. "What is it?"

"I'd like to tell you what connection you have with Acnologia. To be able to recognize someone else by his smell… you'd have to have known him as more than just someone you fought."

The dragon looked away, and Akane was sure he saw a look of sadness in his eyes. "Acnologia was my disciple."

Akane's eyes widened for a moment, then his gaze softened. "I'm sorry about what happened with him.

The dragon nodded. "It was for the best that he was killed."

"Yeah, about that…" Akane interjected. "Acnologia is still alive."

"What?" The dragon perked up, a look of surprise crossing his face.

"And now for the answer to your question."

The dragon waited intently for what Akane was about to say.

"I, Akane Skofnung, am the son of Acnologia."

"What?!" Gildarts exclaimed.

"Y-You're joking, right?" Gray stammered.

"You thought Acnologia was killed twenty years ago. I, however, am his son, and I am only seventeen. Kind of funny, isn't it?"

The dragon kept his cool. "Do you happen to know how he survived?"

Akane nodded. "I don't know all of the details, but he somehow ended up in Edolas. He then settled down and started a family. However, when I was three, I got pulled into Earthland by a random Anima. My last name was given to me for my magic."

The dragon nodded. "Ordinarily, I would find that difficult to believe. However, you smell far too much like him for me to rule that out. And I don't believe that it would benefit you to tell a lie like that, especially with your fellow guild wizards standing right there."

Akane looked over and realized that Gray and Gildarts had heard every word of that. Then he looked back at the dragon. "Well, I guess I wasn't really paying attention to those two, and to be fair, they have the right to know, although I would have preferred to tell them in my own time."

"I see," the dragon acknowledged. "Oh, and Acnologia is not the only smell on you that I recognized."

Akane raised an eyebrow.

"I'm also smelling traces of a former buddy of mine."

Akane's eyes widened. "You knew Ishugar?"

"Ishugar? No. While that name is familiar to me, I barely knew him. I'm referring to someone else."

"Ah. I see."

"Belserion."

That rekindled Akane's surprised expression. He looked up at the dragon.

"You knew him, didn't you?"

Akane shook his head. "Not while he was alive, at least. However, his soul was fused with mine about ten years ago."

The dragon's eyes widened. "You're a fourth generation dragonslayer?"

Akane nodded.

"I see. So it is possible."

"Yeah. It is. Also, I will have you know that even though Belserion isn't in control of this body, he is somewhat aware of what I perceive."

The dragon grinned. "Well, that's unexpected. I suppose I should introduce myself to he who harbors my friend's soul. I'm Torden."

Akane stood up. "Well, Torden, this has been an interesting conversation, but weren't we enemies?"

"Yeah, about that…" Torden paused for a moment, as if thinking. "Maybe I ought to join your side."

This got a surprised reaction out of Akane, Gray and Gildarts.

"You see, I arrived here with some fellow dragons who decided to fight alongside these Baildagch folk. It's part of this world domination plan, you see, since, if one group of humans dominated a large portion of the world, it would be that much easier for us dragons to take over. But honestly, I don't think dragons need to rule the world. And when you mentioned Belserion, I realized I'd rather fight on the side of an old friend than for something I don't even believe in."

Akane stared Torden dead in the eyes, and Torden stared right back.

"That is a suspiciously sudden change of heart," Gray noted.

Torden looked at Gray, then back at Akane. "Fourth generation dragonslayers can communicate with their inner dragon, right? Why don't you consult Belserion?"

Akane listened. Something prodded at his mind. He couldn't tell exactly what it was saying, but it seemed to be some sort of signal of confirmation. He looked back up at Torden. "How do I know that's not just you pretending to be him?"

Torden sighed. "First of all, I would never pretend to be my best friend. Also, I've never heard of a dragon with telepathy magic."

"Fair enough," Akane acknowledged. He turned to Gray and Gildarts. "What do you guys think."

"From my understanding, you're the best judge of whether he's lying or not," replied Gildarts.

"Also," Gray mentioned, "it's not unheard of for a human to convince a dragon to join their side. Natsu did it once, through pretty much the same means that you just did it."

Akane looked back at Torden. "Well, it's good to have a dragon on our side."

* * *

"Kawatatsu no Tekken!" Water condensed around Hisoka's fist as he swung at his target, who dodged out of the way. "Then how about this? Kawatatsu no Kagizume!" He aimed a kick at his opponent, who once again leaped out of the way. "Kawatatsu no Saiga!" He swiped at his opponent's face, this time managing to leave a few cuts from the water. However, his opponent responded by drawing a pair of katana out of thin air and slashing at him. Hisoka tried to dodge, and managed to slightly lessen the effect, but still got a pair of deep cuts in the sides of his torso. He sprouted his wings and flew into the air, clutching his midsection with one hand as his overcoat became soaked with blood. "Kawatatsu no Houkou!" He unleashed his breath weapon, turning his head as his opponent tried to dodge, and this time managing to engulf them. As the mist cleared, Hisoka could see that they were stunned.

"Karyuu no Kenkaku!" Out of nowhere, a human-sized streak of flame slammed into Hisoka's opponent, knocking them to the side. The soldier then stood up as Nashi prepared for another attack. "Karyuu no Tekken!" She swung at the soldier with a flaming fist, but the soldier once again managed to dodge, and slashed at Nashi, who barely moved her arm out of the way in time. The sword sliced through the bandage on her right arm, but only managed to leave a minor cut. "You think you can hit me that easily?" Nashi boasted. "Karyuu no Kagizume!" She delivered a kick similar to the one Hisoka had made, barely leaving a burn on the soldier as they leaped back. This time, the bandages fell from Nashi's arm, revealing the tattoos for the Eastern Zodiac.

"Crap…" Hisoka dropped to the ground as his head started spinning from blood loss. He was caught by someone.

Nashi looked over at the soldier, who was now staring at Nashi's arm. Nashi looked down and realized what had happened, then looked back up at the soldier. "Ah. You know what these are, don't you?"

The soldier looked at Nashi's arm, then up at Nashi, then dashed back towards the Baildagch war camp. Nashi watched for a moment, then looked over to where Natsu was now laying down a dazed Hisoka. Her eyes widened, and she ran over to them. "Are you alright, Hisoka?"

"I just lost… a lot… of blood…" Hisoka managed, breathing heavily. "Can you… cauterize…?"

"To be fair, we're pretty far away from the medic." Natsu undid Hisoka's overcoat. "However, we should be getting you to a doctor, and cauterizing the wounds would make it harder for them to help." He took off his scarf, then pulled up Hisoka's undershirt and wrapped the scarf tightly around his torso, causing Hisoka to grunt in pain. He looked up at Nashi. "Can you get him to a doctor?"

"You think that's even a question?" Nashi asserted. She put one of Hisoka's arms over her own shoulder, then stood up with him, helping him back to the camp. "You should be more careful, you know.

"Perhaps…" Hisoka grunted. "The thing is, it's normally me who tries to dodge attacks, and they were better at it than I was."

"Sometimes you'll be fighting opponents with the same fighting style as you, and sometimes, they'll be even better at it than you." They stopped in front of a medical tent, and Nashi helped Hisoka inside. "Another problem: that soldier saw my tattoos."

"I noticed," Hisoka acknowledged. "Maybe you should stay back. I imagine they went back to the general, so soon they'll all know. It would then be dangerous for you to be on the battlefield."

"I'll be fine," Nashi reassured as a doctor directed them to a sickbed and she set him down. "It can't be that important to them. And even if it is, I think I can hold my own."

Hisoka glared at Nashi. "Be careful, okay?"

Nashi nodded and exited the tent. Then she headed back out to the battlefield, where Natsu appeared to be fighting a few dozen soldiers. Nashi could see more approaching from both sides. "Looks like this is going to get rough."

"Indeed," Natsu replied. His body burst into flame with arcs of lightning. "Double Element Mode: Lightning Fire Dragon." He leaped back into the fray. "Raienryuu no Kouen!" He brought his hands together, creating a brilliant explosion of lightning and flame that took out every opponent who was currently engaged with him.

A roar sounded, and the two fire dragonslayers looked up to see five dragons approaching them. Nashi's eyes widened as she saw the soldier she and Hisoka had fought earlier.

One of the dragons dove at Natsu, distracting him as he had no choice but to engage with it. The other four dragons closed in on Nashi.

"Wha…?" Nashi barely had time to react as one of the dragons released a lightning breath weapon. She barely managed to dodge, but wasn't so lucky with the next dragon, which also had lightning.

"Nashi!" Natsu screamed as he tried to run over, but was blocked by the sky dragon who had gone for him. He watched helplessly as one of the dragons picked up Nashi's unconscious form in its claws, and two of them flew off while the two lightning dragons joined the fight against Natsu. "This is why you shouldn't have come after us, dammit!" Both his arms turned dragon-like as his emotions fired him up. "You are going to regret kidnapping my daughter!"

One of the lightning dragons gave Natsu an intrigued look. "Double dragon force? Good thing we stayed to help you. I didn't even know that was possible."

* * *

Hisoka looked around the medical wing. There wasn't much to do, as it just took care of basic life-saving and patching up soldiers. "Oi, doctor! Can I head back to my tent?"

"You're wounds need to heal," the doctor replied.

"I heal really quickly," Hisoka testified. "I have healing magic, you see, and while I can't consciously use it on myself, it does have a passive effect on me so…"

"I said no," the doctor cut him off. "Sorry, but even if your wounds are healed, you're still required to take some extra time to recover.

Hisoka sighed, and was about to lay back down, when suddenly, someone stumbled through the tent flaps, nearly collapsing on the ground, but then was caught by the doctor. Hisoka realized who it was. "Natsu!" he called, concern rising in his voice. "Where did Nashi go?"

Natsu lifted his head slowly, then looked over at Hisoka. Hisoka's eyes widened as he saw the tears in Natsu's eyes, and could hear a strong wave of frustration, grief and guilt. "She's gone…" Natsu weakly answered. "They took Nashi!"

* * *

 **Yeah. I'm not sure what to say about this chapter. I mean, Akane befriended a dragon and Nashi got kidnapped. Also, I'm afraid the story may soon take a dark turn… Anyway, hope you enjoyed!**


	20. Baildagch Arc - Rescue

"Nashi's… been kidnapped?"

Natsu failed to respond to Hisoka's question, and passed out in the doctor's arms. The doctor sighed and dragged him over to an unoccupied bed, laying him down gently

Hisoka gritted his teeth, and clenched a fist. He then stood up. "She should have listened to me!" He began to walk towards the exit, but was barred by the doctor.

"Where do you think you're going?"

"What business do you think it is of yours?!" Hisoka spat.

"The business of a patient trying to leave before they've fully recovered!" the doctor snapped back.

Hisoka stood there for a moment. He could sense the protectiveness of a mother in her mind, as well as her voice.

"I'm sorry that all of this has happened," the doctor continued. "I have lost many friends in this war, as well as my girlfriend, and both our children. I know exactly how you feel. But if you dash into the enemy camp to rescue her, especially if you haven't fully recovered, you're just going to get yourself killed."

"It's not just personal!" Hisoka snapped. "Nashi possesses a unique power that the Baildagch are trying to obtain – something that could allow them to take us down."

"And what does one wounded dragonslayer expect to do about it?"

Hisoka's eyes widened as he realized the doctor's reasoning. He backed away and sat down on his bed as he felt tears forming in his eyes. "Right…" He looked over at Natsu's bloodstained scarf, then picked it up and handed it to the doctor. "Can you give Natsu his scarf back?" The doctor nodded and placed it next to Natsu's bed. "One more thing…" Hisoka added. "Can you go get General Fyodorov? I need to explain the situation."

* * *

"Tetsuryuu no Uroko!" Emma covered her body with iron scales, then grabbed the sword of her opponent, yanking it out of their grasp, and started eating it. She got halfway down the blade, then tossed the rest to Merlin.

"Thanks, Onei-chan." Merlin caught the sword and ate the rest of the blade, then got out his pen and wrote "carbon" in the air, eating it as it solidified into the actual substance. "Kouryuu no Uroko!" He covered himself in steel scales and joined his sister. They both landed several blows on the now-disarmed soldier, eventually knocking them out.

"I hope Will's doing okay."

"She'll be fine," Emma reassured. "She's with the most powerful wizard of our generation."

Merlin nodded as two more soldiers approached them. Merlin could sense significant magical power coming from them. "Looks like we have a bit of a challenge."

"It would seem so," Emma agreed. "However, I'd say we make a good team."

"I think those two do as well, but let's do our best."

* * *

"The Eastern Zodiac?"

Hisoka nodded. "You know about it?"

Fyodorov began to both look and sound more concerned. "My grandfather possessed it before. If your friend now has it… did something happen to him?"

"Almost," Hisoka replied. "I was able to heal him, and then he gave these tattoos to Nashi and walked off. He said something about seeing her in a vision."

Fyodorov nodded. "He did say something about a vision before he disappeared. Like, the next holder of the Eastern Zodiac powers."

"Yeah. That was what he seemed to be trying to say about Nashi. Do you happen to know how the different symbols work?"

The general nodded. "I do. And I'm pretty sure the Baildagch general does not. Unfortunately, their prince does possess celestial spirit magic, and he may know how to steal the mark from Nashi."

Hisoka's eyes widened, and he stood up. "I have to go after her!"

"No," Fyodorov ordered. "First of all, you're still recovering. Second, any attempted raids on the enemy war camp are directed by me."

"I don't think you understand, general." A look of fury crossed Hisoka's face.

"You're still recovering, and you're not going alone. That's an order from your general!" The general stood her ground.

"My general, you say? I'm sorry, but my team wasn't even sent here to fight in the first place. We just decided to, because we were needed. However, say one of our teammates gets captured, and we don't just sit around awaiting orders. I'm determined to rescue someone precious to me, and your orders don't mean shit in the way of that!"

The general looked Hisoka in the eye for about a minute. Then she broke the gaze. "Well, you're not technically my soldier. But don't test my patience. You're about to go on a suicide mission that I ordered you not to do, and keep in mind that I allowed you to seek medical care and hospitality from us. I could stop you. However, I do not want to deal with you right now. Do what you see fit."

"Thank you," Hisoka growled, and picked up his overcoat, storming out of the tent. He then headed over to his tent. "Also, I'm not an idiot," he grumbled under his breath. "You thought I was going to go alone?" He stepped into his tent and removed his undershirt, then looked at the bandages. He pressed against where the wounds had been, and felt no pain. He removed the bandages, and found that any remaining blood was hours old. He put his undershirt back on, and then his overcoat. Then he sprouted his wings and flew off towards where Emma and Merlin had said they were fighting.

* * *

Elkhart turned to the sound of heavy flapping, and was shocked to see Akane flying side-by-side with a dragon. The two landed outside of the cage William had created.

"Uh… what's the meaning of this?" William asked.

"It's a long story," Akane admitted. "Basically, this is Torden, and he's on our side now."

Suddenly, William's breathing quickened, and she knelt down.

"Oi! Are you alright?" Akane ran over towards William, but as he tried to go through the bars, he slammed into the rune barrier William had set up. "Ow!" he rubbed his nose. "Um… can you let me in, please?"

Elkhart looked over at William, who seemed to be having a panic attack from seeing another dragon. "Hold on…" He pulled out a pen and knelt at the base of the runes, rewriting a few of them. "Now try it."

Akane stepped through the barrier, this time with no sudden obstruction, and went over to William. "Will, are you alright?" He placed a hand on William's shoulder.

William nodded. "Just give me a moment." She removed Akane's hand, took a few deep breaths, and looked up at Torden. "Sorry. My first encounter with a dragon ended with me getting crushed."

Torden looked taken aback for a moment, then bowed his head. "I'm sorry to hear that," he conceded. "Was it on purpose?"

"It was," Akane confirmed. "I watched it happen."

"I see," Torden acknowledged. "I'm sorry you were so unfortunate as to meet a dragon with that sort of indecency. Although, I am curious as to how you're still alive."

"According to Merlin and Akane, there was this weird moss that was soaked with healing magic."

Torden tilted his head in confusion. "That's strange. Where did you get the moss?"

"It was on a forest floor," Akane replied. "The entire place was absorbing magic from a powerful lacrima."

Torden nodded, an intrigued look on his face.

"What's going on here?"

Everyone turned to see Hisoka, Merlin and Emma standing on the other side of the cage. Akane looked at Hisoka, then at Torden, then back at Hisoka. "Um… I kind of managed to convince a dragon to join our side."

Hisoka looked shocked for a second. Then his expression returned to normal, and he looked around at everyone. "You know what? That's perfect! We could use a dragon for what we're all about to do."

"What are you talking about?" asked Elkhart.

"It would seem Nashi has been captured," Merlin explained. "Apparently, the Baildagch know something about the Eastern Zodiac, and are going to try and steal those powers from Nashi."

"Don't get me wrong," Emma proclaimed. "I hate Nashi's guts, and I really don't want to save her. However, for one thing, she's our teammate. For another, it probably wouldn't be good if these guys got ahold of these powers, given how hard they're trying to obtain it."

Hisoka nodded. "We're going to raid the Baildagch war camp, and we're going to save Nashi. If we have a dragon on our side, that will make it a lot easier to infiltrate their ranks." He looked up at Torden. "What's your name, dragon?"

"Torden," Torden replied. "And what might your name be, human?"

"I'm Hisoka," Hisoka replied. "So, Torden, are you up to this?"

Torden stroked his chin in consideration. "Well, it would incredibly dangerous, even if we fooled them into thinking we were with them. Ordinarily, I would be absolutely against it. However, I will instead base my decision on the decision of this boy here." He pointed towards Akane.

"What's with this strange connection with Akane?"

"Apparently, my inner dragon was an old friend of his," Akane replied. "That's how I convinced him to join our side. It was actually by accident."

Torden nodded in confirmation.

"Anyway, I'm up for it," Akane continued. "Nashi is our friend. What plans did the general make?"

The look on Hisoka's face immediately turned sour. "The general isn't willing to help," he countered. "We're on our own here." He turned to William. "I would recommend that you stay back at the camp."

"No way!" William declared. "I can do a bit of fighting, and even when I don't fight, I can provide support."

Hisoka sighed. "Well, I suppose I can't stop you. You are part of the team."

"Gihi!"

* * *

Erza stood up from the table. "I may not be legally able to go get the members of Dragon King, but I can go after Elkhart, as both a parent and a guild master. I think I'll have Macao fill in for me. I'll need Mira to come along and help."

"I'm coming, too," Henri chimed in. "As the guild master of Dragon King, I can legally go after them, as well as request help from other guilds."

"What's this about going after… 'Dragon King', was it?"

Everyone in the room jumped at the sudden familiar voice. Erza turned to see the man who had spoken standing in the doorway.

"Jellal!"

Jellal smiled and headed over to Erza. Erza responded by approaching him, and the two embraced.

"It's been a while," Jellal mused.

"Indeed," Erza agreed, breaking the embrace. "Also, you're late to the meeting."

"I'm honestly surprised it went on this long. So what's this I hear about a 'Dragon King' and going after Elkhart?"

Erza sighed. "Well, let's just say that our son has been a bit troublesome, as well as some new arrivals to Fairy Tail. How's the rest of Crime Sorciere?"

"They're doing well," Jellal replied. "We all survived the mission, and nobody's permanently injured."

Erza nodded. "Good. Anyway, would you like to help with a rescue mission?"

Jellal palmed his forehead. "What did Elkhart do?"

"He went on the five hundred-year quest."

Jellal's eyes widened, and his jaw dropped. "What?! How the hell could you let him do that?"

"I didn't. He snuck off with some other members of our guild. Well, at the moment, they're technically a separate guild."

Jellal's brow's furrowed in confusion. "I'm confused."

"All of the younger dragonslayers in our guild decided to form a separate temporary guild just to see how well a guild made entirely of dragonslayers would do in the Grand Magic Games." She pointed at Henri. "Henri here is their guild master. They snuck off without her consent, and Elkhart went with them. They're called Dragon King."

"I see," Jellal acknowledged. "Well, we're going to try and go after them, right?"

"We're currently trying to work it out," confirmed Erza. She then turned to Ichiya. "Can you lend us Christina?"

"I'm afraid that Christina isn't going anywhere without a pilot and crew," Ichiya replied. "Therefore, if you want to use our ship for transport, my men and I will have to go with you."

"Well, then I guess you'll be coming," Erza replied. "It's the fastest mode of transport we have available to us, and we'll be wanting to bring some dragonslayers with us, which means the anti-motion sickness magic will come in handy."

Ichiya nodded. "We will gladly provide you with what you need."

"I think we should all go with our most powerful wizards," Kagura suggested. "I believe this could be our chance to turn the tides of the war."

Everyone looked at Kagura expectantly.

"I will ask Milliana and Risley to come along."

"If we bring multiple wizards from all of the guilds here, that may pose a problem," Ichiya objected. "She could get to the battlefield in about a week with a normal load. However, we're talking about a dozen times her normal capacity."

"Oh, yeah," Erza remembered. "Actually, come to think of it, only a dozen?"

Ichiya nodded. "Christina has received a few upgrades since we began rebuilding her after the Alvarez-Ishgar war. She could hold maybe sixty or seventy passengers and still make it in a week and a half."

"That works," Erza declared. "We don't need every guild helping. We just need our most powerful wizards to come along and turn the tides of the war, and rescue our guildmates who are already out there."

"Crime Sorciere is made entirely out of powerful mages," Jellal added. "I would like to bring them all along."

"Fair enough," replied Ichiya. "We will also take Kagura and the two that she said she wanted coming along. I will be taking along the Trimens. Erza, who did you have in mind?"

"Again, I plan on taking Mira. I'm also planning to bring Gajeel, and maybe Romeo and Asuka."

"Perhaps you should take the Raijinshuu as well."

"I can't, Sting. They're still in…" Erza paused as she realized who she was talking to. "…Edolas…"

"Really, now?" Sting inquired. "Yeah, I guess you're right. They stayed to search for Sting, Rogue and Freed."

Erza glared at Sting. "You're not funny. When did you get here, anyway?"

"A few minutes ago," replied Sting. "I was wondering when you guys would notice."

"Right. Well, yeah. I think the Raijinshuu would be a good choice. What about you?"

"Definitely Rogue," Sting pondered. "We've been a team since we were little, after all. Also Minerva, perhaps, as well as Rufus and Orga. And I think I'll ask Eallesander as well, though I won't pressure them."

"Oh, yeah," Erza noted. "What was it about Eallesander? How were they able to use magic in Edolas?"

"I told you. Eallesander doesn't use magic," Sting reminded.

Erza looked confused for a second, then shook off the feeling. "Right. By the way, how's everyone doing over in Edolas?"

"Well, they seem to be doing surprisingly well for a former monarchy trying to establish a democracy."

"That's good."

"Why are they trying to set up a democracy all of a sudden?" Jellal asked. "Just curious."

"Ah. You didn't hear, did you?" Erza inquired. "Your Edolas counterpart was assassinated."

For a moment, a shocked expression crossed Jellal's face. Then his expression relaxed. "I see."

"Anyway, what about you, Jura? You have some powerful wizards at your disposal."

* * *

Natsu opened his eyes. Staring down at him were Lucy, Wendy, Happy and Charle. He groaned and sat up.

"Are you alright?" Lucy asked.

"I feel better than before," Natsu replied. Suddenly, he remembered the events that had transpired before he collapsed, and started to get up. "Nashi…!"

Lucy placed a hand on Natsu's. "We know. The general explained everything. And we're going to do what we can to get her back."

Natsu let out a _tsk_ of annoyance. "That goes without saying."

"That was impressive what you did back there," Happy congratulated. "Double Dragon Force. I don't think anyone's ever achieved that."

"What?"

"The doctor told us you seemed to have recently used Dragon Force," Charle explained. "And Happy saw your lightning-flame dragon mode from a distance."

"Why is your scarf stained with blood?" Wendy asked. "I didn't see any deep wounds on you."

Natsu thought for a moment. Then he remembered. "I used it as a makeshift bandage for Hisoka. He lost a lot of blood, and it was the only way he could get here safely."

Wendy nodded. "Anyway, I just used up a bunch of my magic healing you, but you'll have to recover the rest of the way on your own."

"Thanks, Wendy." Natsu stood up and put his scarf back on. "So what's the plan?"

Lucy chuckled.

"What's so funny?"

"Just… hearing that from you," Lucy explained. "Normally, you'll just rush headfirst into the fray and then improvise, so hearing you offer to listen to other people's plans caught me off guard."

"Lucy, our daughter just got captured and could get seriously hurt. I have to keep a cool head, or we could get her killed."

Lucy nodded. "Right. Well, Fyodorov does plan on sending us in. You see, the kids already headed in against her orders, and now we have to make sure they survive."

"We're going to create a distraction," Wendy continued. "We're the only ones powerful enough to create a distraction of reasonable size, and the only ones powerful enough to stand a good chance of getting out of such a distraction alive."

"That makes sense," Natsu acknowledged. "However, I would like to go after Nashi myself. You guys can distract them."

"If you do, I'm with you," Happy declared.

"Same here," agreed Lucy. "We're her parents, and we have the right to go directly after our daughter."

"That's fine," Wendy agreed. "Once we get Gray and Gildarts on board, that should be more than enough for you to do that."

"Then let's go speak to them!" Natsu declared, dashing out of the tent. The others exchanged glances and went after him.

"We should inform the general before we go anywhere," Charle advised.

"We will," Natsu reassured. "But first, we're reassembling the team."

* * *

"I suppose we'll need to notify the general about our new ally." Hisoka looked up at Torden.

"I can take care of that," Akane offered. "You guys go on ahead. I'll catch up." He sprouted his wings and flew toward Fyodorov's tent.

Elkhart watched Akane leave, then turned back to the others. "Well, let's go."

William stood up and walked over to Torden, who laid down so as to make things easier, and climbed onto his back. Merlin followed, and then Elkhart. Hisoka looked around. "Where's Thomas?" he suddenly asked.

"Over here." Hisoka turned to see the dark gray tabby flying over to them.

"Weren't you with Akane?"

"I got curious and decided to go observe the doctor's work," Thomas replied. "I'd really like to improve my medical skills."

"I didn't see you at the tent."

Thomas shrugged. "Must have been a different doctor. This is a fairly large army, after all. Multiple medical facilities are to be expected." He looked over at Torden. "What's the meaning of this?"

"Akane managed to get a dragon on our side," Merlin explained. "Also, Nashi's been captured, so we're about to go rescue her."

"I see." Thomas looked around. "Where's Akane?"

"He went to tell the general about our new ally," Hisoka replied. "He said he'd catch up. Now, let's get going." He climbed onto Torden's back, then looked over at Thomas. "You may be able to fly, but it'll be easier if we're all together."

Thomas nodded and flew onto Torden's back.

"Let's go!"

Torden stood up, spread his wings, and took off.

* * *

Lucy stepped out of the general's tent, then looked around the rest of the team.

"So, then, shall we go?" Gildarts suggested.

Lucy nodded. "Let's go."

Happy landed on Natsu's shoulder, and Charle did the same with Wendy. Gray began walking forward, and the others followed suit.

"I have a feeling," Gildarts speculated, "that one way or another, this war is about to come to an end."

"Let's hope it ends in our favor," Wendy replied.

The team continued walking until they were well out of their own camp. Then they charged towards the Baildagch camp.

"Karyuu no Enka!" Natsu's body lit up, and his speed picked up.

"Gate of the virgin and gate of the bull, I open thee!" Lucy pulled out two keys. "Virgo and Taurus!" The respective maid and cow spirits materialized charging alongside her. "Star dress: Capricorn!" Her clothes changed to match those of the goat spirit.

"Ice make: Twin Scimitars!" Gray held out his hands, and a pair of ice swords appeared in them.

"Fast wind that runs the heavens, and stout arms that tear the heavens, I enchant thee… Ile Vernier! Ile Arms!" A turquoise aura surrounded all seven members of team Natsu, as well as Lucy's spirits.

"I'm sorry that I can't provide magic that helps with the initial charge," Gildarts apologized, "but I'll make up for it when we strike."

Charle burst into her human form, while Happy continued to fly beside Natsu.

They burst through an advancing line of soldiers, and began their attack.

* * *

 **And with this, I'm sorry to say that not everyone will make it out unharmed. I leave it to you to figure out precisely what I mean by that. Hope you enjoyed!**


	21. Baildagch Arc - The Raging River

"Feeling better?"

Nashi glared at the prince, who smiled back at her. Then she looked at her restraints, and tried igniting them.

"I can tell what you're trying to do, and I will inform you ahead of time that that's magic-sealing stone. Now answer my question: are you feeling better?"

Nashi huffed. "Well, I was electrocuted several times by those dragon friends of yours, so that wasn't so fun."

"Oh, sorry about them. They can be a bit rough. Although to be fair, if they hadn't been rough, you may have escaped."

"And what about my dad? He was with me at the time, so I'd like to know what happened to him."

"Oh, the older dragonslayer? We let him escape, as he wasn't worth the trouble, but he did manage to heavily injure two dragons, even though we sent three to fight him."

Nashi snickered for a moment, then burst out laughing.

The prince looked at her, confused.

Nashi continued to laugh for about half a minute, then settled down. "You think he wasn't worth the trouble?" she scoffed. "Well, prepare to get a lot of your troops hurt!"

"I don't think your general will let them go to so much trouble as to rescue one wizard."

"Oh, the general won't have a say in it," Nashi corrected. "You don't know a thing about Natsu Dragneel, or anybody in Fairy Tail. You should have been there during the Alvarez-Ishgar war! I mean, to be fair, I wasn't born until three years after that, but if you even live in Ishgar or Alakitasia, you know the story."

The prince sighed. "Well, even if they do, they'll probably get themselves killed."

"But you'll lose way more of your own soldiers."

"That is true. But that magic you have, it's worth it."

Nashi sighed. "Are you so sure about that?"

"You don't know the full potential of those tattoos, do you, young celestial mage? Do you know how long we've been trying to obtain that power? How I could turn the tides of the war?"

"Really, now? Well, I'm pretty sure you'd have to be a celestial spirit mage to hold it."

The prince chuckled and pulled a golden key out of his pocket. Nashi's eyes widened as she recognized the wave symbols drawn on it.

"Aquarius…"

"Oh, you know this key? Yeah, my family's had it for about twenty or so years. What's with the surprised look? You should have noticed by now that celestial spirit magic tends to run in royal families. I've heard that even your own queen is a celestial spirit mage."

Nashi's eyes narrowed out of fury. "You are going to give that key back."

"'Back', you say? My dear child, this key is mine."

Nashi seethed. "That key belongs to my mom! She's been searching for it ever since she found out it had respawned. Aquarius is her oldest friend! Give it back!"

The prince sighed. "The previous key was sacrificed by the previous owner, which, by what you said, I'm going to deduce was your mother. Unfortunately, she chose to sacrifice the key of Aquarius. It belongs to the family of Mongh now."

Nashi glared at the prince, then realized this was getting her nowhere. She looked around the room, seeing the pointed ceiling and the candles. "What is this place, anyway?"

"It's a temple for the Eastern Zodiac," the prince explained. "Being here will make it easier to extract the power from you."

"I see."

"Now, convincing you to give us that power will also make things easier, but one step at a time."

Nashi sighed. "I wonder what you have in mind."

* * *

William opened her eyes, breaking her focus. "It's no use!" she complained. "I've lost her scent among the crowd of other scents."

Merlin looked over at Elkhart. "What about that thing you used to track us by our guildmarks?"

Elkhart shook his head. "I told you, the map only covers Ishgar and Alakitasia."

Hisoka gritted his teeth with impatience. "Is it possible you could somehow trace it off map?"

"Well, I designed it just to display on a map."

"I know," Hisoka cut off. "However, if the map is detecting a signal of your own making, shouldn't you somehow be able to track it as well?"

"I'm not sure," Elkhart admitted.

"Do you know how to find out?"

Elkhart shook his head. "I would have to recreate the signal."

Hisoka opened his overcoat, revealing his guildmark. "Use this."

Elkhart looked at Hisoka for a second, then down at his Dragon King guildmark, and then back up at Hisoka. "It's going to be tricky without the tools I used…"

Hisoka gave a _tch_ of annoyance.

"…but I'll give it a shot." He placed a hand on Hisoka's arm. Instantly, he felt the calming effect that Hisoka had on those he touched, which helped him focus. He got a feel for the magic emanating from Hisoka's guildmark, and how it differed from the rest of his magic. He singled out and recognized the tracking magic he had placed that only he could detect. Then he scanned for the same signal in other locations, closing his eyes and focusing all of his senses on the surrounding ethernanos. He then opened his eyes and pointed a few degrees south of east. "There," he directed. "About eighty-seven kilometers."

Akane smiled. "Good job." He looked over at Torden's head. "Oi! Torden, did you hear that? About eighty-seven kilometers slightly south of east."

"There's a human temple there, if I recall correctly," Torden replied. "They may be using the energy from that temple to do something to your friend."

"Like steal her powers," Hisoka suggested.

"Well, then let's go," William insisted. "We've got no time to…" She was cut off as the others watched something behind her flash by, spraying a small amount of blood into the air as it went. William's eyes widened in pain, and she fell off of Torden's back.

"Will!" Merlin, Emma and Akane simultaneously screamed. Akane leapt off of Torden's back, diving towards William as she plummeted towards the ground. He grabbed William and then sprouted his wings, slowing down their fall, but too late to avoid a rough landing as they skidded to the ground.

"Oi. Will. Can you hear me?" Akane's eyes widened as he removed a hand from her back and found it to be covered in blood. He turned her over to find a gigantic slash wound across her back. "No… not again…" He looked up to see two soldiers standing before him, one of them holding what looked like a sharpened boomerang, which then dematerialized and was replaced by a katana.

Hisoka was about to jump himself as he watched the scene below.

"Wait!" Emma requested. "Take me down with you!"

"And me," added Merlin. "Akane needs our help fighting those two."

Hisoka looked between the two of them, listening to their brainwaves. "I can tell that's not the main reason, but you're right. Akane needs help." He grabbed one of the siblings in each arm, then leaped off of Torden. "And I promise I'll save your sister!" He sprouted his wings, slowing their fall so that they landed with a soft _thud_. The two attackers turned towards them, and Hisoka recognized one of them. "Jochi?"

Jochi grinned at Hisoka. "Do I know you?" he asked.

Hisoka glared at him. "I know you're messing with me. Kwatatsu no Tekken!" He lunged forward as water condensed and wrapped around his fist. Jochi dodged out of the way easily, and Hisoka continued forward, sliding into a kneeling position next to Akane and William.

"A feint?" Jochi looked over at Hisoka, then turned back just in time to be hit in the stomach by an iron club, while his ally leaped out of the way of a steel one.

Hisoka looked down at William. She was lying face-down to minimize blood loss, with Akane's hands pressed against the wound. "How is she?" He could no longer hear any conscious brainwaves from William, and he could see that she had lost a lot of blood. As he looked up at Akane, he could see tears in his eyes, and could detect that his friend was upset and frantic.

"Take a guess!" Akane snapped. "Can't you just heal her?"

Torden looked down at the scene below, then turned his head as far as he could towards Elkhart. "Shouldn't we help them?"

"I think Hisoka plans to fly back up here with William," Elkhart replied. "We need to make sure we're at a safe distance from the fight."

Torden turned his head back towards the fight that was starting.

"I'll get her back to Torden, where I can safely heal her," explained Hisoka.

"We'll cover for you," Akane replied.

"In fact, you should go on without us," added Merlin as he took another swing at the requip soldier. "After what they just did to Will, I have a bone to pick with them. Tell Thomas, okay?"

Emma and Akane nodded in agreement, and Hisoka replied with a nod of acknowledgement. Then he wrapped his arms securely around William's body, and sprouted his wings, flying directly up towards Torden.

The requip soldier saw this, and requipped her boomerang, taking a shot at the two dragonslayers. However, no sooner had the boomerang left her hand than the red-haired dragonslayer jumped between her and the target.

Akane held up his right arm, which was now much more difficult as it had been impaled by a sharp-edged boomerang. "You're a pretty good shot with this thing," he admitted, "to hit a person who was a kilometer up in the air and leave a wound like you did." A look of fury crossed his face. "However, I have protected Will for the good part of the past five-and-a-half months, so anybody who injures her that badly is a permanent enemy of mine! Shinkuryuu no Tekken!" His left fist was engulfed in crimson energy. He missed entirely, as he was right-handed, and his opponent was quite agile.

"It's no use speaking to her," Jochi notified as he threw up an energy shield against Emma's attack. "I'm afraid she doesn't speak West Common as well as I do."

"Then I'll just have to convey it! Shinkuryuu no Kagizume!" His foot was engulfed in crimson energy, and he swung at the requip soldier, who dodged out of the way.

"Kouryuukon!" Merlin's steel club extended into her face. This time, she didn't have time to dodge, and she was knocked to the ground.

"Tetsuryuuken!" Emma's iron club turned into a blade, and she slashed straight through Jochi's shield.

Hisoka took one last look at the fight below, then called to Torden. "Let's go!" He turned back to William and placed his hands on the wound. Water condensed around his hands, and the wound began to close. Torden pulled forward, slowly accelerating to a point where the wind was whipping in Hisoka and Elkhart's faces.

"What about the others?" Thomas asked.

"They said they'd stay and fight," replied Hisoka.

"Are you sure we can leave them?" asked Elkhart.

"This is their fight," Hisoka replied. "Let's just keep moving. The sooner we get there, the less likely something bad will happen to Nashi."

* * *

The soldiers charged, but were soon blasted off of their feet as the ground beneath them exploded into hundreds of evenly-sized cubes.

"Moo!" Taurus swung his axe at the soldiers, knocking several dozen of them aside.

"Shall I punish you?" Virgo asked, then swung her chains, flinging debris at the soldiers.

"Good job, guys!" Lucy praised her spirits as she dashed forward and began fighting soldiers with her bare hands.

"Karyuu no Houkou!"

"Tenryuu no Houkou!"

Natsu and Wendy both unleashed their breath weapons on the same area, creating a gigantic firestorm that incapacitated large numbers of soldiers. Gray slashed through soldier after soldier with his ice blades. Eventually, the area was cleared, and the team charged towards the camp.

As the team ran into the center of the camp. Everybody except Natsu, Happy and Lucy stopped.

"Go on without us," Wendy urged.

Natsu nodded, remembering the plan. He looked around, trying to sense the general's magic. It was difficult, as he had only seen him a few times. However, after about a minute of searching, he pinpointed the location of the tent.

"This way!" Natsu ran towards the general's tent, and Lucy and her spirits, as well as Happy, followed. "Karyuu no Kouen!" Natsu brought his hands together, blasting the tent off of its supports and revealing a man who was looking surprisingly calm and collected as he sat at his desk, considering the tent he was in had just been thrown off by a fiery explosion. Natsu stormed over and grabbed the man by his shirt collar, pulling him close. "Where is she?!" A look of rage crossed Natsu's face.

"I am afraid you will have to be a little bit more specific," the general replied. "There are lots of 'she's in this camp."

"My daughter!" Natsu screamed. "The one you captured for her powers five hours ago!"

"Cherry blossom hair, like his," Lucy added. She wasn't shouting like her husband, but the look on her face showed just as much fury.

"I'm afraid we'll have to punish you if you don't tell us," Virgo warned, raising her hands martial-arts-style.

The general maintained his bored look as Natsu pressed his forehead against his. "Well, that just so happens to be a military secret. I am not allowed to tell the enemy."

"So you'll sacrifice your life to keep that secret?" Natsu inquired.

"I would," the general admitted. "However, you are invading my camp, so I have the right to attack you." He jammed his fist into Natsu's stomach. A strange force emanated from the impact, and Natsu was sent flying backwards. "You remember my magic, don't you?" He stomped a foot on the ground, creating a huge array of cracks, and then a massive shockwave that tossed all of his opponents back like dolls. "Now, I would give up my life to defend a military secret. However, I am also confident that I can take all of you on – confident enough that I will bet a military secret. Defeat me, and I will tell you what you wish to know."

Natsu got to his feet. "Honestly, you're making this harder than it needs to be, but sure! If that's what it takes for you to talk, we'll do it! Karyuu no Yuwakashi!" His body lit up once more, this time radiating so much heat that everything around them either burned or melted. The people and their clothes, on the other hand, were unaffected. Natsu showed an expression of surprise and frustration as he realized the Baildagch general was unharmed.

"I'm sorry to say I can redirect thermal energy as well as normal kinetic energy," the general explained. "If that's the best that you can do, how can you expect to defeat me?"

"There's no such thing as 'the best we can do'," Natsu retorted. "When the going gets tough, we improvise."

Lucy nodded, then ran forward, landing a kick on the general, who instantly brought her entire body to a stop, then palmed her foot, sending her flying backwards.

Natsu looked where she had been thrown. "Lucy!" Then he looked back to the general, knowing it would be foolish to let himself get distracted. Besides, Lucy couldn't be taken down that easily. "Karyuu no Tekken!" He swung a flame-engulfed fist at the general, but once again, his strike was brought to a full stop. He did, however, manage to burn the general's glove before he was thrown back.

The general sighed and took his glove off, tossing it aside. "I unfortunately cannot protect my clothes as well as I can protect myself."

Natsu gave a _tsk_ of annoyance. "Well, now I see why you were so confident. This reminds me of when I fought Gildarts back on Tenroujima."

* * *

"We're almost there," Torden notified

"Good." Hisoka looked at the stars above. "It's getting a bit late, and I would really like to save Nashi as soon as possible."

"The real question," Elkhart noted, "is what we're going to do with William. She's still unconscious and vulnerable, so we can't take her into any fights."

Hisoka thought for a moment. "I think I'll set up a rune barrier around her. I've done a lot of reading, so I know a bit of rune magic. I should at least be able to make sure she doesn't get caught up in anything."

Elkhart nodded. "That works, though I can also do rune magic."

Hisoka looked ahead of them. There appeared to be a very squarely designed building, with an inward-curving pointed roof. It was still about five kilometers away. "Is that it?"

"It is," Torden confirmed.

Hisoka squinted and realized that the temple was being guarded by three – no – four dragons. His stomach fell as he realized they were staring right at them. He also noticed that Torden had stopped in his tracks and was just hovering there, implying that he had also noticed them.

Elkhart noticed the sudden stop and looked over. A look of dread crossed his face. "We may have a problem."

Hisoka focused. "I sense a fire dragon, an iron dragon and two…" His eyes widened in surprise. "…two river dragons." He looked down at Torden. "That's weird. River dragons don't normally reside too far away from a body of fresh water. Is there something like that nearby?"

"There is," Torden replied. "There's a lake about two kilometers east of that temple."

The fire dragon took off straight towards them. Soon after their conversation, it came to a stop next to Torden.

"What is the meaning of this?" the fire dragon inquired. "You have three people and a cat on your back, and they all have the mark of the mage guild Fairy Tail."

Hisoka scooted over to Elkhart and William, and started healing William a bit more. She made a bit of noise, and Hisoka stopped. He didn't want her regaining consciousness immediately, as she didn't know what was going on.

"These are prisoners," Torden replied. "I was asked to take them to the prince."

The fire dragon glared at them. "That blonde kid and the girl smell like dragonslayers."

"Why do you think I was asked to take them in?"

"And they are in no way restrained or incapacitated." Before anyone could come up with a response, the fire dragon's talons ignited, and he slashed at Torden, knocking the three humans into the air. Hisoka quickly sprouted his wings and grabbed Elkhart and William. He looked over and saw that the other three dragons were flying towards them. He dove to the ground and set down Elkhart.

At this point, William's eyes fluttered open. "Wha…?"

"We got attacked," Hisoka explained. "Then Akane, Emma and Merlin stayed behind to fight the attackers, and now the rest of us are being attacked by four dragons." He leaped out of the way just as a gigantic iron pillar slammed down on where he had been standing.

William struggled out of Hisoka's arms, and got to her feet. Then she clutched her forehead and dropped to her knees.

"Careful," Hisoka warned. "You lost a lot of blood, which my magic cannot restore."

William nodded, then planted a fist in the ground. "Kouryuushougai!" Steel bars shot up and formed a cage just in time to block a second pillar attack from the iron dragon. She smiled. "It seems the carbon hasn't worn off."

Elkhart threw up his hands, diverting a blast of fire away from himself. He looked over at Hisoka and William. "William, can you fight?"

"Not very well," William replied. "I still can't even stand for more than four minutes. But I can defend myself just fine."

Elkhart nodded and looked up at Hisoka. "Hisoka, I'm afraid we'll have to stay here and fight. You go on without us."

Hisoka's eyes widened in surprise. "Elkhart, you're not even a dragonslayer, and neither Thomas nor William can't fight!"

"And you can heal Nashi if any harm comes to her," Elkhart argued. "Besides, I'm pretty powerful. I don't need dragonslayer magic."

"And I can continue healing William," Thomas added. "I have a bit of healing magic myself."

Hisoka seethed and looked down at William and Thomas, who both nodded. He looked up at Torden, who was dealing with both of the river dragons. He ran out of William's cage, and pointed at Elkhart and William. "You two had better survive, and then we'll all go home together!" He pointed up at Torden. "That goes for you, too, Torden! Don't die!" He flew off in the direction of the temple.

* * *

Nashi's ears perked up at the sound of fighting outside the temple. Then she watched as the physician lowered the weirdly-shaped lacrima towards the tattoos. The lacrima lit up, and Nashi felt a sucking sensation, like something trying to tug her magic away. She tried tearing away her restraints, but they were bolted to the board. She responded by clinging to her energy. She would _not_ let it be taken from her like this.

The prince sighed and said something in Baildagch to the physician, who sighed and turned off the device. Instantly, the tugging sensation subsided. The prince walked over to Nashi. "This machine is, admittedly, susceptible to willpower. However, I will say that we have a way of forcibly extracting that power which will result in permanent damage to your body." He leaned in close to Nashi's face. "So, do we have a deal?"

Nashi glared at the prince, then slammed her forehead directly into his nose. He reeled back in pain, and started clutching it. "I learned that from someone else who really gets on my nerves. Also, I may not be too emotionally attached to the power of the Eastern Zodiac myself, but I can't let you have it. The way you talk about it suggests that you'll get a huge advantage against the resistance, and quite frankly, I will protect the entire continent of Ishgar if I have to."

The prince removed the hand from his nose, and Nashi could see a bit of blood dripping from it. "I'll take that as a 'no'," he deduced, continuing to remain calm. He then held out a hand, and a sword materialized out of thin air. "This is from my sister's requip inventory, but I imagine she'll be fine with me using it for this purpose."

Nashi's eyes widened as she realized what was about to happen.

"I won't deface your guildmark," the prince reassured, "despite how disrespectful you've been, I will respect your guild. We just need the Zodiac markings, after all." He walked around to Nashi's right, and raised the sword.

* * *

Hisoka heard a scream from the temple. His eyes widened and he picked up speed. Then he crashed through the roof, landing among three people, one of whom was nailed to a human-sized board with what looked like magic-sealing stone, and was also the girl he had heard screaming.

He got to his feet. "Nashi, are you al…" His eyes widened as he got a better look at Nashi's condition. "…right…?" he stared in horror at the heavily bleeding stump where Nashi's right arm had been. He looked over at the man to her right, who was holding the arm in one hand, and a bloodstained sword in the other. He looked down at Nashi, her face twisted in pain.

"Sorry you had to see me like this…" Nashi apologized.

"Oh, I have nothing to be mad at you about," Hisoka cut her off. He looked back at the man with the sword, a look of rage like nothing Nashi had ever seen before crossing his face. "You, on the other hand… you just hurt someone precious to me!" The air around him took on a bluish glow as his magic charged up. "You're not getting off so easily!"

* * *

 **Well, this wasn't exactly planned. I mean, I established that the Baildagch really wanted those powers, and then I realized they'd totally go to lengths like this to get them. Anyway, hope you enjoyed!**


	22. Baildagch Arc - The Tide Turns

"Oh?" the prince inquired. "And what do you plan on doing?"

Water condensed around Hisoka's hand, then shot at the stone cuff holding Nashi's right leg. "Nashi, roll over on your side and hold as still as possible to reduce blood loss."

Nashi rolled to her left. "Why can't you just close it up?"

"Because I can do you one better," Hisoka explained. "I'm going to rip this bastard to shreds, and then I'll reattach your arm."

Nashi's eyes widened. "You can do that?"

Hisoka nodded. "I've never actually reattached a limb before, but as long as the cells in the arm are still alive when I get to it, it'll be just like closing a really deep cut."

"Yeah, I don't think that will be happening," the prince replied. "You'll have to get through me first."

Hisoka gave the prince a look of pure rage. "Gladly. That was one of the things I was going to do anyway. Kawatatsu no Enkou!" He spun around, creating an expanding halo of water that spun out towards the prince, who jumped out of the way. The halo then dissipated. "Kawatatsu no Houkou!" A torrent of water came from Hisoka's mouth, creating a large hole in the far wall.

The prince jumped out of the way, taking out a gold key and sticking it in the torrent. "Gate of the water bearer, I open thee: Aquarius!"

"What?" Hisoka's breath weapon dissipated, but not quickly enough to prevent the mermaid spirit from materializing.

"Aquarius, deal with this boy," the prince commanded.

"If you don't ask nicely, I'll blast you away with him!" Aquarius fumed.

"Will you please deal with this boy for me?" the prince requested. "My physician and I have some magic to extract from this arm here." He held up Nashi's right arm.

"Alright, then." Aquarius raised her urn, then blasted a huge load of water in Hisoka's face. "I would honestly like to go on a vacation with Scorpio, but I'm still mad at him, so I guess I'll wipe out this idiot for now."

Suddenly, all of the water turned into multiple wavy trails all converging towards one point as Hisoka consumed all of it. "Honestly, this is like my training in the rapids." He wiped his mouth. "Anyway, thanks for that meal. I used up a lot of magic healing William, see, so that was a nice replenishment."

Aquarius's eyes widened.

"Don't hurt Aquarius!" Nashi shouted. "We're trying to get her back to my mom!"

Hisoka and Aquarius both gave Nashi a look. "What do you mean, get me back to your mother?" Aquarius demanded. "Who even is your mother?"

"Take a guess." Nashi lifted up her head to get a clear view of the spirit. "Get over here, and tell me you don't know who I am!"

Aquarius floated over to Nashi. Most of her right arm had been cut off, but the guildmark was still there.

"You recognize this guildmark, right? Not only that, but my face is all too familiar, isn't it?"

Aquarius's eyes once again widened in surprise. "You're Lucy's… but what happened to your arm?"

"Ask your summoner," Nashi replied.

Aquarius looked over at the prince, and realized to whom the arm he was holding belonged. A look of rage crossed her face, similar to what Hisoka had. "You did this to Lucy's daughter?"

"It doesn't matter," the prince blew off. "I'm your master now."

"But Lucy was my friend." Aquarius raised her urn.

"Aquarius, wait!" Hisoka threw up a hand to stop her. "If you kill him, you'll get banished from the celestial spirit world."

Aquarius glared at Hisoka. "You expect me to just let him get away with it?"

"He won't get away with it," Hisoka reassured. "I'll kill him for you."

Aquarius glared at him for a moment, while Hisoka glared back. "I'm trusting you, friend of Lucy's daughter. Don't let me down." She dematerialized.

A look of annoyance crossed the prince's face. "Well, then, I guess I'll have to fight you myself." He handed Nashi's arm to the physician and said something in Baildagch. The physician nodded and began to run off with Nashi's arm. Hisoka sent a few water bullets after him, but was blocked by the prince. "Sorry, but again, you'll have to get through me."

"Kawatatsu no Tekken!" Hisoka swung a water-engulfed fist at the prince, knocking him back about ten feet.

The prince stumbled to his feet, then launched a ray of purgatory energy at Hisoka, who threw up a water shield just in time.

"Are you sure you don't want your friend's help fighting me?" the prince inquired. "It might even out the odds a bit."

"Even out the odds, you say?" Hisoka glowered. "Even out the odds?! Kawatatsu no Kenkaku!" He engulfed his entire body in water and dove forward in an attempt to headbutt the prince, who blocked the attack with a hand engulfed in energy, tossing Hisoka aside. Hisoka got to his feet. "I'll do even better than that." A blue aura surrounded him. "Second Origin: Release!"

* * *

"Sheesh, she's a tough one," Akane complained.

"She is quite agile," Merlin agreed. "However, we can't give up."

Akane held up his right arm, which still had a boomerang through it. "And I can't fight with this arm."

"Are you sure you can't remove that?" inquired Merlin. "You can survive heavy blood loss."

"Right, but if I pull it out, she might get it back. Shinkuryuuken!" He swiped at the requip soldier with his other arm as a crimson blade grew from it.

"Tetsuryuuken!" Two iron blades formed on Emma's arms, and she slashed at Jochi, catching him with one of her attacks and leaving a large gash. Jochi then extended a purple chain, which connected to Emma, and threw her at the requip soldier.

The requip soldier saw this, and thrust at Emma with her sword. Emma saw this in the nick of time and caught the blade in an iron pillar. Emma tumbled awkwardly to the ground, then stumbled to her feet.

"Akane, switch with me! You deal with the purgatory mage."

Akane nodded, and slashed at Jochi's chain, freeing Emma. Then his blade dematerialized. "Shinkuryuu no Tekken!" Crimson energy engulfed Akane's fist, and he landed a blow on Jochi.

Meanwhile, Emma slashed repeatedly at the requip soldier. The soldier then slashed a few times at Emma. Both dodged out of the way of every attack.

"Kouryuukon!" A steel club shot from Merlin's arm, this time detaching and flying towards the requip soldier, who dodged out of the way, but instantly received a gash in the side from one of Emma's blades. She rolled away and got to her feet, breathing heavily and beating at the wound in her side, causing blood to drip on the ground.

"This is better," Emma decided. "Now, shall we teach these two a lesson about what happens when you hurt one of our guildmates?"

Merlin grinned. "With pleasure."

* * *

Elkhart breathed heavily, and looked up at the fire dragon. "Is that honestly all you've got, kid?" the dragon asked. "Because I'm sensing a lot more magic on you than that."

"Most people who meet me say that," Elkhart replied. "Unfortunately, some of my abilities seem to have locked themselves when I was young."

"That's a shame," the dragon admitted. "Maybe if that hadn't happened, you would stand a very small chance against me."

Elkhart glared at the fire dragon, then charged up his hands with lightning, and, using his meteor spell to fly up at the dragon, smacked him with several gigawatts of electricity. Unfortunately, like the rest of his attacks, this barely left a mark on the dragon's scales. Elkhart held out his hands, causing two elemental foci to materialize from his inventory, and generated blades of lightning. Then he slashed at the dragon, this time managing to blast off a bit of scale. The fire dragon swatted Elkhart aside and then blew fire at him, sending him crashing into the ground.

Torden continued to clash with the two river dragons, clawing, biting, and launching breath weapons. Torden was beginning to look rough. He searched for a good place to land, then dove to the ground, chased by the two river dragons. He managed to devour a large section of the ground before he was attacked again. "Jiryuu no Uroko!" Obsidian plating formed on Torden's skin, protecting him somewhat.

"Give up, traitor," one of the river dragons sneered. "You are to be taken back to the home continent."

"I'd rather not," Torden retorted. "I was actually never interested in world domination in the first place. Then a kid with Belserion's soul in him came along, and suddenly, I had something to fight for. Jiryuu no Houkou!" He blasted sand in the river dragon's face, and escaped his grasp, climbing to a higher altitude.

William sat in her cage as the iron dragon beat at it, trying to break through. "It's no use, you know. That's steel, and I don't think iron is hard enough to break through steel. Besides, I'm kind of crippled. Do you really think I pose a threat?"

"I have my orders," the iron dragon said. "You are a dragonslayer on the resistance's side, and must therefore be eliminated. "Tetsuryuu no Houkou!"

William's eyes widened as the dragon charged up his breath weapon. The cage would protect her from giant iron pillars, but not tiny iron shreds.

"William!" Elkhart shouted.

* * *

"Second Origin?" Nashi watched as Hisoka's power increased. "You can use Second Origin?"

"Metsuryuu Ougi." Dozens of small spheres of water condensed around Hisoka. "Mairu Hikou Ha!" He waved his limbs around in a fluid fashion, and the spheres of water turned into blades as they shot around in accordance with his movements, slicing through anything that got too close to him. He moved towards the prince, who managed to get back with several deep cuts, and was now heavily bleeding.

"So that's how you want to play, huh?" The prince glowered. A field of purplish energy formed around his body, and the water blades were now deflecting off of the field. "Purgatory armor. It blocks high-speed projectiles."

"Hisoka!" Nashi called. "Uncuff me! You need my help."

Hisoka continued re;entlessly attacking the prince. "But you'll die from blood loss!"

"That's already going to happen if you leave me here." Hisoka turned his head, and sure enough, even though what remained of her bicep was the highest point on her body, it was still bleeding pretty badly. "Just close the wound!"

"But then I won't be able to reattach your arm!" Hisoka pleaded.

"So what?!" Nashi snapped. "I'm not getting my arm back, okay? The physician ran off with it. Besides, you can't fight him alone, and I'd rather lose an arm than a friend! I still have my other arm, as well as both of my legs, and I can still fight. Let me help you, dammit!"

Hisoka's eyes watered, and a tear ran down one cheek. "Alright." One of the spheres of water shot at the remaining two cuffs, freeing Nashi's left arm and leg. She jumped up, stumbling a bit as the effects of blood loss set in. Hisoka threw up a water shield with one hand so as to not let the prince attack, and placed his other hand on the stump of Nashi's arm, closing up the wound. Then Nashi leaned in close to Hisoka's ear.

"I don't think the tattoos were the source of the Eastern Zodiac magic," she whispered. "I think it was the other way around: the magic was the source of the tattoos."

"What makes you say that?" Hisoka whispered back.

"When that old man gave me those tattoos, I felt a new energy flowing throughout my body. In other words, a new magic. Now that I've lost the arm that had the tattoos on it, I can still feel that same energy in my body. Not only that, but as soon as the prince cut off my arm, I felt something burning into my left arm; it was the same sensation I got on my right arm when I received the tattoos."

Hisoka reached for Nashi's left sleeve, but Nashi pulled away. Come to think about it, he could still sense that odd celestial spirit magic on her.

"We can check on that later, though." Nashi switched to her normal voice and turned to the prince. "Right now we have an enemy to fight."

Hisoka nodded. "His purgatory armor protects against high-velocity objects," he noted. "Unfortunately, all of my attacks involve high-velocity objects."

"That's where I come in." Nashi raised her remaining arm. "Karyuu no Youkugeki!" A tendril of flame slashed at the prince, passing through the energy field and burning through his clothes. She then lunged at the prince, who tried to dive back, but Nashi still managed to grab his right upper arm. "Time for a bit of payback. Karyuu no Akugeki!" Flames burst out from between her hand and the part of the prince's arm that she was holding, causing Hisoka to back away from the intense heat. She let go, and the prince backed away, screaming in pain as his arm went limp.

"What have you done?!" The prince yelled. There was a blackened area where Nashi had gripped the arm.

"Disabled your arm," Nashi replied. "I mean, you did it, too, so I assumed you were okay with that sort of thing. I mean, it's not the same, since your arm is still attached, but the nerves are burnt away where I gripped it, so you won't be able to move or feel that arm."

"Well, this almost makes me want to fight with just _my_ left arm as well," Hisoka joked.

Nashi flashed an annoyed look at him. "Make another joke like that, and you will be!"

"Well, unfortunately for you, I'm left-handed." The prince raised his fingers at Nashi, and shot a magical bullet at her, hitting her in the shoulder and causing her to back up a few steps out of pain. He shot a few more.

"Stop that!" Hisoka shouted as he lunged at the prince, but was stopped in his tracks as more bullets were fired at him. He dodged the first one, but wasn't so lucky with most of the barrage. "Gaaahhhh!" he screamed mostly out of rage rather than pain.

The prince then stopped firing bullets at them, and unleashed a magical chain which latched onto both Hisoka and Nashi, and started swinging them around the room. Hisoka grabbed the chain in one hand and his foot in the other. "Kawatatsu no Akugeki!" He copied Nashi's move and burst the chain with a point-blank shot of pressurized water, then leaped to his feet and ran up the wall, dashing around the room and then diving at the prince. "Kawatatsu no Kenkaku!" His body was engulfed in water, and he slammed headfirst into the prince, who dropped the chain that was still attached to Nashi and threw up a shield. "Fifth Origin: Release!"

"What?" Nashi could now see the ethernanos particles as they concentrated around Hisoka and flowed into his body. "What the hell is Fifth Origin?"

"I'll explain later!" Hisoka replied. "Metsuryuu Ogi!" He waved his hands, and water rose up around them, creating a rapidly spinning wall and trapping them inside. "Mairu Mizu Kabe!" He grinned confidently. "I control this space now."

* * *

Elkhart wasn't even certain how the next second played out. The iron dragon unleashed its breath weapon directly at William, and suddenly, it was slamming into a wall of stone, while Elkhart had his arm extended towards the wall.

Elkhart withdrew his arm and looked at his hand in shock. He stared at the stone wall that had shot up to protect William in the nick of time. Suddenly, a bunch of thoughts and feelings he had had trouble processing were becoming crystal clear as he took a moment to truly think about himself and his surroundings. "I get it…" he looked up as one of the river dragons released its breath weapon on him. He almost instantly threw up his hand, and the torrent of water swerved to one side of him.

"Now this is getting interesting," the fire dragon commented.

Elkhart smiled. "It all just clicked in my head!" he announced. "That moment of emptiness, of helplessness… it gave me a moment to attune myself with who I am." Elkhart then proceeded to throw his hands up in the direction of the river dragon that had attacked him. A cone of wind surged towards the river dragon and blasted her backwards.

"Interesting!" the fire dragon mused. "You just might stand a chance against us!"

"Requip!" A small sack of marble-sized lacrima materialized in Elkhart's hand, and he took some out, charging them with his magic and throwing them at the fire dragon. The dragon barely any time to process that these lacrima were even there before a gigantic airburst emanated from each one.

The fire dragon reeled back in pain as some of the airbursts punched through his scales, creating a patchwork of bare spots.

"Meteor!" Elkhart shot towards one of the bare spots. "And, Redshift!" From the fire dragon's point of view, Elkhart's colors shifted over to shades of blue and ultraviolet. From the point of view of everyone else, he turned red. He then slammed into one of the bare spots with far more momentum than his velocity suggested, digging into the dragon's skin.

The river dragon who had attacked Elkhart dove in front of the fire dragon, shielding him from any further attacks, and then placed a claw on his chest, healing the bare spots and somewhat restoring the scales.

"Impossible!" the iron dragon shouted. "I can't sense any dragonslayer magic on you."

"What is that power, boy?" Torden called as he continued to struggle with the other river dragon. "How did you hide the scent of dragonslayer magic?!"

"I didn't," Elkhart corrected. "I have no dragonslayer magic." A look of absolute fury crossed his face. "However, I will take these dragons down!"

William and Thomas watched in surprise and awe from William's cage as three of the four attacking dragons advanced on Elkhart.

* * *

Natsu stood up, breathing heavily and clutching his left arm. Lucy had had to send her spirits back, but still retained her star dress. Both she and Natsu were both winded from the relentless blows, while Happy continued to hover behind them, unable to do much, as his transformation magic was relatively basic.

Suddenly a blur tore past them, and four slash marks appeared in the general's clothes and even in the flesh below. The general's eyes widened and he clutched his belly in pain, while everyone else looked at the attacker in surprise.

Standing between Natsu and the general was a relatively short humanoid figure. For the most part, they looked human, save for a black demonic hand and a pair of wings that were now retracting into the person's back. On their right forearm was a white Sabertooth guildmark.

"What are you?!" the general demanded. "You're not human!"

"But I am a member of Sabertooth," Eallesander replied. "It doesn't matter what I am. I will fight for my guild!" They grabbed the general's face. Instantly, ice crystals started forming around their hand. The general's face twisted in pain, and he blasted Eallesander away. Eallesander immediately got to their feet. "You conduct kinetic energy in such a way that it affects others instead of yourself. You deflect heat just fine, but right there, I was sucking the heat away from you so there was nothing to deflect. Am I correct?"

The general seethed in annoyance. His left eye appeared to have been disabled by the extreme cold.

The nitrogen in the air liquefied and then hardened into a blade in Eallesander's hand. They swung at the general, who managed to knock the blade away, but his hand was burned by the cold. The air surrounding the blade continuously liquefied and then boiled away as it spilled off, creating a dense fog. "And one other thing: you conduct such kinetic energy consciously, and you can't react to something you can't see." The fog continued to rise around them. "I, however, can sense you perfectly fine through fog." They continued to land attack after attack on the general.

"I surrender!" the general shouted.

"Sabertooth wizard, stop!" Natsu commanded. Eallesander reluctantly did as told, and the fog cleared. The general was covered in several wounds that had been touched by frozen nitrogen, including two stab wounds.

"Your daughter is being held in a temple ninety kilometers due east of here," the general informed. "You'll want to hurry if you don't want any harm to come to her. Since you won, I will not send any soldiers after you, nor go after you myself. Now go. You want to save her, right?"

Natsu nodded and turned to the others. "Come on, Lucy, Happy, and, uh…"

"Eallesander," Eallesander replied.

"Come with us, please," Natsu requested. "We may need help."

Eallesander nodded and followed.

* * *

Emma and Merlin lowered themselves to the ground. They were covered in wounds. Akane had passed out after defeating Jochi. The requip soldier continued to go strong with just the slash wound that Emma had made earlier. She raised her sword for a killing blow…

…and was suddenly kicked in the stomach and thrown backwards.

Emma's eyes widened as she saw the man now standing before them. He had dark skin and short, black hair that stuck straight upwards, and he wore a greenish-brown jacket, a white T-shirt, and blue denim jeans, as well as a pair of tan laced shoes – sneakers if Emma remembered the name correctly – as well as a pair of black-framed, clear-lensed goggles. On his neck was a black guildmark of a familiar guild; Emma just couldn't put a finger on it.

" _Very acrobatic,_ " the man commented to the requip soldier in East Common. " _I see you combined it with your swordfighting skills. However, can you beat a man who has trained his whole life to fight wizards with his bare hands?_ "

" _Let's see, shall we?_ " the girl suggested. She slashed with her katana at the man, who ducked out of the way, then reached over and grabbed the blunt edge, tearing it out of her grasp. The katana dematerialized, and a longsword materialized in the girl's hand. The blade was covered in blood, and she _tsk_ ed in annoyance at this. " _I see my brother's been using this,_ " she glowered. She swung at the man at an unnaturally rapid pace, and the man ducked, twisted, leaped, and stepped out of the way of every single attack.

" _My turn,_ " the man declared. He dove past the blade, grabbing the arm that was holding it and then delivering another kick to the girl's stomach, then an uppercut to the jaw. He then slammed a hand down on her brain stem, knocking her out and causing her to drop to the ground. Then he turned to Merlin and Emma and switched back to West Common. "I take it you two are wizards of Fairy Tail?"

Merlin and Emma nodded.

The man held out a hand to shake. Emma took it. "I'm Utkarsh Alpine. I'm part of the mage guild Hallowguard. Perhaps you've heard of us?"

Emma nodded again. "They're a fairly new guild, but they're still made mostly of incredibly powerful wizards. I hear this is supposed to be your first year in the Grand Magic Games, right?"

Utkarsh nodded. "I plan to be there."

"But what are you guys doing this far East?" asked Merlin.

"About seventy or so powerful wizards were called out here. We traveled via Blue Pegasus's flying ship, Christina."

Emma smiled. "Thanks for helping us." She looked over at Akane. The boomerang had dematerialized when its owner was knocked out, so now he was bleeding heavily from where it had impaled him. "Can you help us with our friend here?"

* * *

Hisoka grinned once more.

"What is it?" asked Nashi.

"Can you sense it?" Hisoka inquired. "I have a feeling that the tide has turned."

The Baildagch prince glared at them. "Nothing has changed!" He lunged, and the three continued their fight.

* * *

 **You know, I think I'm slowly improving. I wasn't proud of how the Anima Arc played out, but I liked this one quite a bit better. I actually originally wrote this as a way to get better at writing, but I really want to make it actually _good_. Anyway, Hope you enjoyed!**


	23. Baildagch Arc - The Heart of a Dragon

"So, what's a Sabertooth member doing this far East?" Natsu inquired.

"Nothing much," Eallesander replied. "About seventy of Fiore's strongest wizards were sent here to end the war and bring you guys home."

"I see," Natsu replied. "Well, thank you for coming."

Eallesander smiled slightly, and the group continued moving East.

* * *

"Karyuu no Kagizume!" Nashi brought a flaming foot up and landed it squarely on the prince's stomach.

"Kawatatsu no Juatsukiri!" Hisoka threw up his hands, and a spinning cone of water slammed point-first into the prince. "Kawatatsu no Houkou!" He unleashed his breath weapon on the prince again and again. Nashi looked over at him and realized he seemed to be suffering from injuries he definitely hadn't gotten from the prince.

"Are you alright?" Nashi asked.

"Fifth Origin is like First and Second Origin, except it replenishes extremely quickly, but damages the body in the process – usually internal damage. I'll be fine as long as this doesn't go on for too long."

Nashi looked around. The water wall still hadn't subsided, even after Hisoka's repeated use of his breath weapon. This Fifth Origin certainly was powerful. "Karyuu no Houkou!" Nashi launched her own breath weapon, engulfing the prince and sending him flying into the wall, which shredded the back of his robes, and he leaped forward as it cut into his back.

"You are going to regret not escaping when I gave you the chance," the prince warned.

"You're going to regret hurting someone precious to me!" Hisoka retorted. "Metsuryuu Ougi Kai!" He flew above the prince. "Mairu Mizu Kabe Ha!" He did a bit of twirling, waving his limbs in a circular fashion, causing about seven tendrils of water to extend from the wall towards the prince and shoot around at blinding speed, slicing through his flesh like butter.

As these water blades subsided and Hisoka landed next to Nashi, they could both see that the prince was heavily battered and cut. Then, the water wall subsided and Hisoka collapsed.

"Hisoka!" Nashi looked down at the river dragonslayer, then up at the prince. "I guess it's up to me, then?"

Before she could attack, the prince pulled out a small, octahedral lacrima. "To thing I would have to use my emergency escape…" There was a small flash from the lacrima, and the prince disappeared.

Nashi gave a _tch_ of annoyance and looked down at Hisoka. Then she looked over at the other battle.

* * *

"Those simple airbursts won't get through my iron plating," the iron dragon taunted.

Elkhart returned an evil grin. "Thanks for the tip."

"Karyuu no Houkou!" the fire dragon unleashed his breath weapon on Elkhart.

"Aaaand thanks for your assistance." Elkhart concentrated the flame into a one-foot-wide line that was then redirected into the iron dragon's chest. The iron dragon roared in pain as Elkhart shot up with his combined meteor and redshift, this time with the addition of fire and lightning, and slammed directly into the hole he had melted. The iron dragon's eyes went wide for a brief moment, then the light left them, and the dragon fell to the ground, unmoving.

Elkhart stumbled to his feet. "Who's next?!" he offered.

Torden stared in surprise at the dead dragon on the ground. Unfortunately, this left him open to attacks from the river dragon he was fighting. "Dammit! Jiryuu no Houkou!" The river dragon quickly disengaged as Torden unleashed his breath weapon.

"Kourin!" the other river dragon screamed as she dove over to the iron dragon's body. She looked down at Elkhart, enraged. "What the hell have you done?!"

Elkhart could see the look of grief in the dragon's eyes, and he stood there for a moment, trying to decide what to say. He looked over and realized he could now see Nashi in the distance, struggling with Hisoka's unconscious form.

"You know, that's a very good question," Elkhart finally replied. "You could say the same thing that he was about to do to my friend over there." He indicated William, who was still sitting in her cage.

The river dragon growled and lunged at Elkhart, who then slammed his hands on the ground, causing huge stone spikes to jut out at an angle and slam into the dragon, cracking her scales. Elkhart ran up and leaped towards the river dragon, then sent a drill of pressurized air directly into the river dragon's heart, bringing her down in a similar way to how he brought down the iron one.

"You barred our way to saving our friend. You tried to kill another of our friends. You supported the invading forces who wanted to take away our freedom." Elkhart glared straight into the fire dragon's eyes.

"What are you?!" the fire dragon demanded as Elkhart slowly walked towards him. "The only humans that can take down dragons are those with dragonslayer magic!"

Elkhart kept walking. "I am Elkhart Scarlet-Fernandes of Fairy Tail. I am the child of two exceptional humans. Don't tell me what humans can and can't do!" He leaped into the air, forming a wind drill on each limb, and hovered there. "For my friends – for Fairy Tail – fighting a few dragons is nothing!" He shot towards the fire dragon, and was swiped aside by a claw. He tumbled to a stop, still hovering, and lowered himself near the ground, kicking up a bit of dirt so that it became a part of his wind drills. He sucked some moisture out of where the river dragon's attacks had landed, and charged up his wind drills with lightning. He once again charged up his meteor spell and shot towards the fire dragon, swerving out of the way of each attack and slamming into the dragon's scales, cracking through and sending an electrical shock through his entire body. The dragon reared back, and Elkhart went in for another attack on the same spot, this time stopping the dragon's heart with the lightning, and sending him crashing to the ground. He then looked over at Torden and the remaining dragon, who were just standing there in shock, along with Thomas and William. He shot towards the river dragon, but was grabbed by Torden.

"That's enough, boy," Torden warned as the river dragon flew away out of fear. Elkhart struggled momentarily, then relaxed and dispelled his magic. Torden continued to hold him for a moment, then set him down.

William retracted her cage and ran over to them. "Elkhart, what was that? I didn't know you still had that magic."

"Neither did I," Elkhart replied. "One second, I was helpless, and the next… I'd thrown up a wall to protect you."

"What in the name of Mavis was that?!" Everyone turned to see Nashi approaching them, struggling to drag Hisoka along.

"More importantly, what happened to your arm?" demanded William.

Nashi looked over at what was left of her right arm, which was really just half of her upper arm. Her Dragon King guildmark was, however, still intact. "Oh, this? The guy who kidnapped me thought the tattoos were the source of the Eastern Zodiac magic, when actually, it's the other way around. Actually, that reminds me, could someone roll up my sleeve for me? I need to check something." She laid Hisoka down, and Elkhart walked over and rolled up Nashi's sleeve.

"The tattoos…"

"As I suspected," Nashi concluded. "The magic always marks its holder with these tattoos, so if the flesh that has the tattoos on it is lost, the tattoos reappear elsewhere. And, since my other arm was convenient, that was where they reappeared."

"How did you know?" asked William.

"I felt a burning sensation on my left arm the instant my right one was cut off," Nashi explained. "It was the same as what I felt on my right arm when I first got the tattoos. Not only that, but the new magic I felt flowing into my body at the time still hasn't left me."

"And what happened to Hisoka?" asked Elkhart.

"He used Fifth Origin."

"What the hell is Fifth Origin?!"

Nashi shrugged. "He said he'd explain after the fight, but then he passed out. Another thing, though… is it just me, or is there a dragon sitting calmly next to us?"

"It's alright," Elkhart reassured. "This is Torden. He's on our side."

Nashi nodded in acknowledgement. "So, I guess he's our means of getting back?"

William nodded.

"So Elkhart," Nashi added, "when did you learn dragonslayer magic?"

"I didn't," Elkhart instantly replied.

"So you just had dragonslayer magic?"

Elkhart shook his head.

"But I just saw you kill three dragons!"

"I did it without dragonslayer magic."

Nashi stared wide-eyed at Elkhart, her mouth hanging open, and slowly nodded. Then her expression softened, and she sat down, tears beginning to form in her eyes.

"Um Nashi, I'm sorry that you lost your arm, but…"

"It's not that," Nashi cut him off. "The prince has Aquarius's key."

Elkhart's eyes widened. "What?"

Nashi nodded. "And we let him escape with it."

Thomas looked down at Hisoka. "Should we get him back, maybe? It looks like he could be suffering from internal damage."

William knelt down and held Hisoka's wrist for a moment. "His pulse is really weak."

Nashi nodded and stood up, wiping her eyes. Then she looked down at Hisoka, and then up at Torden. "But how do we get him up on Torden's back? Or me, for that matter." She indicated the stump of her right arm.

"I got it." Elkhart slammed a fist on the ground, and a pillar lifted the four of them up, then curved and flung them directly onto Torden's back. Torden grunted from the impact, then moved away from the pillar as Thomas landed on his back much more lightly, spread his wings and lifted off.

"Careful!" Nashi exclaimed. "We've got an unconscious person here!"

"Not to mention a cripple." William rubbed her back, then sat up. "If you have someone who can't even stand up for more than four minutes, I don't think tossing them around is a good idea. We could have just had Thomas carry us up."

"Sorry," Elkhart apologized. "It's the first time in nine years that I've been able to use earth magic. I guess I got a little overexcited."

Nashi sighed and looked in the direction Torden was flying. "Well, I guess we're headed back."

* * *

Natsu looked the man up and down. He didn't sense any magic coming from him, but he could see a guildmark he didn't recognize on the man's neck. "Utkarsh, was it?"

Utkarsh nodded. "That's right. I suppose your five-year absence means you probably haven't heard of my guild, since we first formed about three years ago."

"I see," Natsu replied. "And I'm guessing that redhead is the other new Fairy Tail member, since he has our guildmark?"

"That's right," the redhead confirmed. He held out his hand to shake. "I'm Akane."

Lucy looked at Merlin and Emma. "Where are the others?"

"They went ahead," replied Merlin.

"Oh, and we befriended an earth dragon," Akane added. "So please don't attack him."

Emma nodded in confirmation of this fact. "Anyway, it's good to see you again, Eallesander. I've found you to be interesting."

Eallesander tilted their head in confusion. "How so?"

"Well, for one thing, all that business about your abilities not being magic. What are they?"

"I'm going to guess curse," Natsu answered.

Eallesander's eyes widened, and they looked up at Natsu. "How did you know?!"

"Because I know a demon when I smell one. I fought plenty of them during the Face crisis."

Emma looked at Eallesander. "Wait… you're a demon?"

Eallesander looked back at Emma, still wide-eyed, their entire body shaking with anxiety. "Uh…"

A huge, warm smile crossed Emma's face. "That's so cool!"

"Wha…?" Eallesander leaned back as Emma held out a hand.

"I'm Emma Redfox of Fairy Tail!" Emma exclaimed. "You may have spotted two of me back in Edolas, and I saw you with my dad."

"Uh…" Eallesander slowly extended their own right hand and shook Emma's. "You won't… tell anyone… will you?"

"Why? Do you not like people finding out?"

Eallesander shook their head. "Not everyone thinks the same way you do about meeting a demon."

"I see," Emma acknowledged. "Well, in that case, no. I won't tell anyone."

"Thanks," Eallesander replied.

"Anytime," Emma offered.

Eallesander smiled.

"Well, anyway, let's go find the others! They've probably found Nashi by now."

* * *

Elkhart looked around at the terrain below them, and then spotted them. "There!"

Torden looked down, and sure enough, there was Akane, along with Emma and Merlin, plus some other people that Torden didn't recognize. He slowed himself, then glided down to the ground and laid down. Elkhart and Nashi jumped down energetically, while William slowly and carefully climbed down the dragon's side, and Thomas glided down, carrying Hisoka.

Everyone who hadn't already seen the state Nashi was in now stared at her in shock, particularly her parents.

Natsu's brows furrowed. "What the hell did they do to your arm?!"

"They cut it off and ran away with it," Nashi replied. "Sorry. And also, mom, I'm especially sorry to you."

"Me?" Lucy inquired. "What are you sorry to me for?"

Nashi's expression turned to pained. "The same guy who took my arm also has Aquarius's key."

Lucy's eyes widened. Then she collected herself. "Well, we can't go after her now. But at least now we have a lead. Who was it?"

"I didn't get a name," Nashi replied, "but he's the prince of the Baildagch."

"That's good to know," replied Lucy. "More importantly, we need to do something about your arm."

Nashi shook her head. "That arm isn't going back on. Hisoka said he could only reattach it if the wound stayed open, but he closed it so I wouldn't die from blood loss."

Tears began to form in Lucy's eyes, and she ran over and hugged her daughter, catching her by surprise. Nashi took a second to process this act, then wrapped her left arm around her mother.

"It's okay," Nashi reassured. "I'll get by somehow, whether it's with a prosthetic or I get used to not having a right arm."

Just then, Wendy flew in with Charle.

"Guys," Wendy announced, "the Baildagch general is ordering a retreat!"

"A retreat?" Happy inquired.

"Apparently, a bunch of Fiore's strongest mages arrived on Christina," Charle explained.

"Yeah, we know that," Lucy replied. "We have two of them right here."

Charle looked at Utkarsh and Eallesander. "Ah. I see. Well, anyway, they've overrun the Baildagch forces, so now the general's ordering a retreat."

Wendy looked over at Torden and Nashi. "Okay, first of all, what's the dragon doing here? Second, what happened to Nashi's arm?"

"I ate it," Torden replied.

Wendy's slapped her forehead in disappointment.

"Relax, human. I was only joking. The Baildagch prince stole Nashi's arm because he thought it would give him her Eastern Zodiac powers."

"He was wrong, though," Nashi added. "I still have those powers."

Wendy knelt over Hisoka. "And what happened to him?"

"He used Fifth Origin."

Wendy looked at Nashi, confused. "What's Fifth Origin? For that matter, what's Fourth Origin?"

Nashi shrugged and pointed to Hisoka. "I would ask him, but he's unconscious."

"He certainly has reason to be," Wendy marveled. "His heart and lungs are damaged, and one of his kidneys is down. His consciousness must have shut down so his brain would use less oxygen."

"Can you heal him?"

Wendy nodded. "I'm working on that." She held her hands over Hisoka, and a green glow emanated from them. Nashi could hear his heartbeat getting stronger, and see the same happening with his breathing.

"He'll regain consciousness in anywhere from a few minutes to half an hour." She looked over at Nashi. "Sorry, but I can't regrow limbs."

Nashi nodded. "I understand."

"I, however, may be able to build you one," Elkhart offered. "I've never actually built an artificial limb before, though, so it may take a while. Although, maybe if I had help from someone like Porlyusica, I could get it done more quickly."

The general handed a loosely bound stack of pages to Nashi.

"What's this for?"

"It's about your new power," Fyodorov explained. "It was written by my grandfather, and it tells you how to use it."

"Thanks. Merlin, can you hold this?"

Merlin nodded and took it.

"And Nashi," Fyodorov added before they walked out of the tent, "I truly am thankful that they didn't know how to obtain your power. I am also, however, deeply sorry about your arm."

"It's fine," Nashi reassured. "You know what I do in an unfavorable situation? I improvise."

Fyodorov smiled. "I will keep that in mind. Safe travels."

Happy grabbed Nashi by the shoulders and carried her up to the ship, then flew down for the next passenger.

"Incredible," Nashi marveled as she looked down at the deck. "I've heard of anti-motion sickness magic, but I've never actually experienced it."

"It's a marvel, isn't it?" William inquired. "So what did the general want with you?"

Merlin held up the pages. "This was written by the previous holder of the Eastern Zodiac. She wanted to give it to Nashi. Unfortunately, it's not in a language we can read."

William held out a hand. "Let me see." She took the pages from Merlin, and flipped through them. Then she handed them back. "I can read it," she replied.

"Thanks, William," Nashi beamed.

"No problem," William replied, then dropped into a sitting position as she felt her legs about to give out.

Akane and Torden exchanged looks.

"Well, goodbye, human."

Akane was about to say "goodbye" in return, but suddenly, he had a better idea. "Actually, Torden, how would you like to join a wizard guild?"

Torden's eyes widened in surprise at the offer, then he burst out laughing. "I've actually never heard of a dragon joining a wizard guild! That's pretty funny."

"But I am serious," Akane pointed out.

"I know," Torden replied. "It is, however, still funny. You know what? Sure, I'll give it a go. I have nothing better to do."

"Well, we can't fit you on the ship," Akane noted. "Based on how quickly you were flying, I'm guessing you could get to Fiore in about two weeks. Wait here!" He sprouted his wings and flew up to the ship.

* * *

"Well," Henri began, looking among the rest of Dragon King, "every single one of you left without my permission."

"Sorry," Hisoka apologized.

"And look what happened to you as a result." Henri glared at Nashi.

"As the guild master's brother, I gave them permission," Thomas pleaded.

Henri glared at Thomas, and he shut up. Then she sighed. "Whatever. I don't really have anything to say. Just don't do something this dangerous again." She flew off and began wandering around the ship's rooms.

"So what's Fifth Origin?" Nashi asked. "In fact, I've never even heard of a Fourth or Third Origin."

"Well, Fifth Origin is basically like First and Second, except it can be replenished quite rapidly, but ethernanos being processed into magic power by the body that quickly can cause severe damage if overdone."

The others nodded.

"Fourth Origin is when you convert your soul into magical power. You can use various amounts of it at different times, but it can't be replenished, and once you use it up, you die."

"So that's one reason you skipped ahead to Fifth," William noted. "What about Third Origin?"

"The power of time," Hisoka replied. "It's a single use of your entire future potential for magic power, and once you use it, you can never use magic again, save for the higher levels of Origin. Third Origin was even used to fight…" his eyes widened. "…Dimaria."

"You mean that god takeover mage who could control time?" asked Akane.

"But Wendy and Charle can both still use magic," Elkhart pointed out. "And I'm pretty sure they're using just First and Second Origin."

Hisoka nodded. "I suspect that someone else also fought Dimaria." A sudden realization came to him.

Merlin tilted his head in confusion. "Then how come we don't know about them?"

"Somewhere between then and now, they must have used Final Origin."

"Final Origin?"

Hisoka nodded. "Final Origin, as the name suggests, is the sixth and final level of Origin. Basically, you unleash an infinite amount of magical power."

Elkhart's eyes widened in awe.

"However," Hisoka continued, "once you unleash Final Origin, you sacrifice your entire existence, past included. Your life, any memories others would have of you: gone. I think someone else fought Dimaria alongside Wendy and Charle, and then, at some later point, they used Final Origin."

Akane stood up. "Well, I enjoyed this lesson, but I have somewhere to be."

"Where?" asked Hisoka.

"I'm going to be Torden's guide back to Fiore."

"Back to Fiore?"

William gave Akane a confused look. "Why is he going to Fiore?"

Akane grinned. "I convinced him to join Fairy Tail." He walked over to talk to the supplies manager.

Hisoka looked at Nashi. "So, Elkhart said he could make a replacement, huh?"

"Indeed I did." Once again, Elkhart managed to slip in unnoticed and startle them. He sat down. "I would need some rare metals, though. It would need to be made from an alloy with a high enough melting point to withstand your magic. I would just use pure tungsten, but it also needs to be light enough to actually be useful."

"How long would it take?" asked Hisoka.

"For me to make the arm? About two months."

"What if you didn't sleep?"

Elkhart's eyes widened. "But I need sleep!"

"I have a solution to that," Hisoka replied. "I can give you the benefits of ten hours of sleep in a single minute."

Elkhart gave Hisoka a funny look as he took a moment to process what he had just said. Then he sighed. "Well, if I didn't need to sleep, and I spent all of my free time working on it, and I didn't go on any jobs for the allotted time, I could shorten it to two weeks."

Hisoka nodded and smiled at Nashi. "Then you can be ready in time for the Grand Magic Games!"

Elkhart nodded. "I'll get started as soon as we get home. I will, however, need Porlyusica's help, as it requires knowledge of human anatomy."

"Oh, by the way…" Nashi reached into her pocket and pulled out two silver celestial spirit keys. "…look what I bought back in Graecos!"

"New keys?"

Nashi nodded. "Aquila, the eagle, as well as Lupus, the wolf. They're actually some pretty handy spirits."

"But when did you…?" Hisoka began.

"I went on a few errands with Nikos. I felt like exploring. Sorry I didn't tell you about these earlier."

"It's fine," Hisoka said. "I was just surprised."

Emma walked over to Eallesander. "Hey," she greeted.

Eallesander looked up from where she was sitting with Sting and Rogue.

Emma sat down with them. "I see Hiromi isn't here."

Rogue shook his head. "He was out on a job when we left. He should be back at the guild by now, though."

"Thanks, Emma," Eallesander said.

"For what?" Emma asked.

"For calling me cool," Eallesander explained. "A lot of people didn't take kindly to me being a demon. Everyone in Sabertooth accepted it, and welcomed me to the guild. You, however, are the first person I've heard call it 'cool'."

"Well, it is," Emma protested. "And besides being of an interesting nonhuman race, you're just an interesting person in general."

Eallesander smiled. "Thanks again."

"Hey, are you planning to be in the Grand Magic Games?"

Eallesander looked at Emma for a moment, and appeared to be in thought. Then they answered. "I'm not sure. Why?"

"You should," Emma suggested. "We get to fight for fun rather than out of hostility, and I'm really interested in fighting you in that setting."

Eallesander raised an eyebrow, grinning. "I'll think about it."

* * *

"Well," Nashi noted, "I guess I was wrong about not getting back in time for the Games."

"Not so fast," Elkhart cautioned. "It can take a long time to grow accustomed to an artificial limb. You might want to sit out on the Games."

"I don't need to use it well, as long as I can use it," Nashi replied. "I already have a left arm that I can use pretty well."

Elkhart sighed. "Fine, but if you break your new arm out of carelessness, I'm going to rip it off and smack you across the head with it."

Nashi's eyes widened. "Noted."

"But anyway," Hisoka changed the subject. "After over a month, we're headed home."

Elkhart smiled. "By the way, Hisoka, thank you."

"For what?" asked Hisoka.

"Not pressing me for answers, for one thing, and understanding that I would have to let it out when I'm ready."

Hisoka stared at Elkhart, confused.

Elkhart sighed. "I'm talking about the conversation we had right before you flew out my bedroom window."

"Oh, yeah! That one."

"Also, you got me thinking about it, which I should also be thanking you for. You see, I got my powers back."

"I see," Hisoka acknowledged. "So you figured out what it was?"

Elkhart nodded and looked around at Merlin, William, Hisoka, Nashi and Thomas. "And I plan to tell all of you, as well as Henri and Emma, after the Games."

"I see," Hisoka repeated. "Well, I look forward to that. In the meantime, let's enjoy the ride home."

* * *

 _The 500-year quest._

 _Remember that one, Rika? I'm sure you do, since the prince was the one who cut off your arm. It's kind of funny. It was incredibly stupid for us as non-S-class wizards to go on the 500-year quest without permission, but our timing couldn't have been more perfect, given that we, as dragonslayers, arrived just as they were unleashing dragons, and some other guild wizards came along later to provide the final push to victory._

 _Anyway, we're still doing fine. Torden has calmed down, but he's still worried about Akane. William is still pretty broken up about it, though. I also ran into Soren the other day, and he said it was possible that Akane went home. He's planning on leaving Crime Sorcier and going home himself, and told me he might stop and look for Akane on the way there. Wherever Akane is, I hope we can find him. He's our friend, after all, even if he hasn't forgiven us. Anyway, don't be away for too long. I really care about you. We all do._

 _Sincerely, Hisoka_

* * *

 **And that's the end of that arc. As promised, the next one will be the Grand Magic Games. You know, a few of these things happened unexpectedly; I just wasn't sure how not to write them. This includes Nashi losing an arm, as well as a dragon joining Fairy Tail. Actually, the only part of this that I did plan from when I started writing this arc was Elkhart regaining his powers (as well as a bit more that will be revealed at the end of the next arc). But all that set aside, hope you enjoyed!**


	24. GMG Arc - Final Preparations: part 1

**I realized that due to the contents of this chapter, there was a good chance you would find it rather boring. Therefore, I am doing a dual release this week, and will release the next chapter later today.**

* * *

A knock sounded on Porlyusica's door, and she went over and opened it. She looked at Hisoka, Elkhart and Nashi.

"No!" she asserted, certain she knew what they were about to ask. "I can't get an arm to regrow."

"That's not what we were about to ask!" Hisoka protested as Porlyusica began to close the door. "Elkhart's already planning to make an artificial arm. We just need your medical expertise to actually attach it."

Porlyusica stopped, then reopened the door. "What sort of medical expertise?"

"Like, connecting the nerves," Elkhart replied.

"And what sort of attachment do you plan to use?"

"Well," replied Nashi, "since I'm immune to fire, we were thinking we could just weld it to the stump."

Porlyusica raised an eyebrow, then sighed and went inside, gathering what she thought she'd need.

"What are you doing?" asked Hisoka.

"Packing up," Porlyusica responded. "Where do you plan on working?"

"Over at the blacksmith," Elkhart explained. "You see, what we need is an alloy that's light enough to make a prosthetic arm, but has a high enough melting point to withstand Nashi's magic. The trouble is, that alloy doesn't exist, so we're going to have to make one."

"Also, to make things faster, I have a spell that removes the need to sleep for a limited time," Hisoka mentioned. "According to Elkhart, we could get done in time for the Games if I use that."

"And why haven't you used this spell before?" Porlyusica asked.

* * *

"Ah." Nashi stared down on Hisoka in disappointment. "That's why."

"Well, I feel substantially more alert," Elkhart noted. "So at least we know it worked."

"Yeah, but Hisoka's out like a light. Now we know why he requested that he do it in his room. Plus, he was only able to cast it on you."

"Well, for now, I'm all that we need," Elkhart argued. "It will only take me twelve hours to make a working schematic, and that's when I'll be needing you." He turned to Porlyusica.

"I'm guessing you'll want to work in your bedroom?" Porlyusica inquired. "After all, that's where you keep all of your work."

Elkhart nodded. "Let's go." They exited Hisoka's apartment and crossed into Elkhart's.

Nashi marveled at the mess of paper, pens and pencils lying around, as well as a few stacks of large books.

"So, I know how to convert electrical signals into magic. I just need to connect the correct nerves in Nashi's arm to the correct wires in the prosthetic. That's where you come in."

Porlyusica nodded. "I will do my best. It is my understanding that you can communicate telepathically?"

"I can, but what does that have to do with it?"

"The power of words is limited," Porlyusica explained. "What you need is a combined understanding of the human nervous system and the magical system you just described."

Elkhart nodded. "You know, come to think of it, we may have a bit of a challenge on our hands."

"What is it?" asked Porlyusica.

"The alloy that I want to create contains mainly tungsten, nickel and copper," Elkhart explained. "Unfortunately, the boiling points of nickel and copper are both well below the melting point of tungsten. I don't think the blacksmith has the tools for that."

"We'll work on that problem next," Porlyusica decided. "For now, let's work on this schematic."

Elkhart nodded.

"Also," Porlyusica added. "Nerve configurations are generally the same from person to person, but the location of each nerve will vary. Therefore, we can design the connections first, but I'll need to examine what's left of Nashi's arm in order for us to know where to connect each nerve."

Elkhart nodded. "Understood."

* * *

There was a knock on the door.

Levy looked up from her reading, then sighed and looked over at Gajeel. "I'll get it." She stood up, walked over, and opened the door to see Elkhart standing there. "What do you want?"

"I need to speak to the twins," Elkhart requested.

"Well, William just went to bed, and Merlin's out training with Emma. What do you want with them?"

"You may have heard that I'm trying to build a metal arm for Nashi?"

Levy raised an eyebrow.

"The metal alloy that I'm trying to make can't be made in a normal forge," he explained. "The melting point of one of the metals is way higher than the boiling points of the others, so I need dragonslayer magic. Can I come in?"

Levy stepped aside, and Elkhart walked in. "Where's William's room?"

Levy pointed up the stairs. "First door on your left."

Elkhart headed up the stairs, opened the door and stepped inside. Sure enough, in a bed at the far corner from the door, fast asleep, was William. Elkhart walked over, placed his hands on her shoulders, and started shaking her. "William! Oi, William!"

William's eyes slowly opened. "Wha…?" Suddenly, she sat bolt upright as she realized the person in her room was not a family member, accidentally slamming her forehead into Elkhart's.

"Gah!" Elkhart backed up a few steps. "When you have a steel skeleton, even a damaged one, you kind of need to be more careful than that."

"Sorry!" William pleaded, holding up her hands in front of her. "You just startled me and… I'm in my bedroom, in my pajamas, and…"

"It's fine," Elkhart reassured. "I'm sorry for startling you like this. It's just that I need your help, as well as Merlin's."

"With what?" William asked.

* * *

Merlin kept his eyes closed, clearing his mind as the waterfall cascaded onto his head and filled his ears with thunderous splashing.

"Merlin!"

Merlin continued to sit perfectly still as a bolt of lightning struck the waterfall and ran through his nervous system, flinching slightly, but otherwise maintaining his composure.

"Merlin?!"

He could hear Elkhart's voice in the background. It was probably his imagination, though. He had frequent dreams about Elkhart.

"For Mavis's sake, Merlin! I know you're trying to clear your mind and all, but I need your help!" A hand grabbed Merlin by the back of his jacket, and he was dragged out from under the waterfall and onto the riverbank. He opened his eyes and saw Elkhart looking down at him.

"Sorry." Merlin got to his feet. "I thought your voice was just in my head."

Elkhart sighed. "Well, now you know I'm real. Anyway, I need help from you and William. I've already gotten her back to my apartment. Come with me. Actually, let's stop by your house and get you a change of clothes. I'm not letting you near my work while you're soaking wet."

"Can't you just use your magic?"

"Oh, yeah," Elkhart realized. "I can do that now." He extended a hand, focused on the moisture in Merlin's clothes and hair, and then whipped his hand to the side, ripping most of the moisture straight out.

"Ow! Ow! Oooww!" Merlin shouted as his hair was yanked to one side. "Can't you be a bit more careful?!" he demanded as he tried as best he could to flatten his hair back down.

"Sorry," Elkhart apologized. "I'm still getting the hang of it."

Merlin sighed. "Anyway, what do you need our help with?"

"That can wait until I can explain it to both of you at once. Come on."

* * *

"Okay," Elkhart began as he sat down with Merlin and William. "So, you guys can form alloys, right?"

"Well, we've only ever done steel," William explained. "I'm not sure how well we would do with other alloys."

"Well, steel requires carbon, which you've done fine with," Elkhart pointed out.

"True," Merlin noted.

Elkhart took a casual glance at Nashi, who was fast asleep on his bed, then reached under his bed and heaved out three large ingots, each one roughly half a foot tall and wide and a foot and a half long. "This is copper, nickel and tungsten." He pointed to each respective ingot. "I bought them from the blacksmith this afternoon. Also, this is important. Have you ever tried controlling the carbon content of your steel?"

"Sometimes," William replied. "For example, my skeleton had an unusually high carbon content back when we fought that frost dragon, which I thought was a good idea, but then it cracked really easily. Hence the permanent damage."

"I see." Elkhart stood up the copper ingot. "Can one of you try eating part of this, just to see if it works?"

"Well, when Dad and Emma eat other metals, it doesn't have that effect, so I'm not so sure…"

"That's why I called you and not them. The bond you two have as twins strengthened your magic, and as you saw in Edolas, it can even change the properties to work in different environments."

"That is true," Merlin acknowledged, remembering the time he had protected Edo-William. He leaned over, placed his mouth over one corner, and sank his teeth into it and bit off a chunk. He chewed for a few seconds, then swallowed it. He then took a moment to let the copper enter his body and dissolve into magical power.

"Well?" asked Elkhart.

"Well, it entered my system." He held up his right hand, and concentrated, trying to single out the magic of the copper from the iron, and the orange-ish scales covered his hand, going slightly down his arm. He looked up at Elkhart and nodded. "It felt funny entering my system, since it's a new magic, but other than that, it worked!"

"Yes!" Elkhart shouted out of excitement. "Now, I want both of you to eat a portion of all three of these ingots."

Merlin leaned over and took a few more bites out of the copper, while William went for the tungsten.

"This stuff is really tough, even for a dragonslayer's teeth," William commented.

Merlin passed the copper to William, and took the nickel and ate some of it. Then he handed it to William and reached over, trying to pick up the tungsten.

"Sheesh, this stuff is heavy! Elkhart, can you give me a hand?"

"You don't need one," Elkhart replied. "It's Nashi we're giving a new hand, remember?"

Merlin's eyes narrowed. "Hardy har har. Would you just help me with this?"

"Well, I thought it was funny." Elkhart reached over and helped Merlin lift the ingot over to him.

Merlin took a few bites out of the tungsten, then stood up and shook various parts of his body. "Whoah, that feels really weird."

Elkhart nodded. "Can you tell apart all of the different metals in your magic?"

"I can," Merlin confirmed.

"Same here," William added as she swallowed a bit more of the nickel.

"Excellent! Now, I want you to make a sheet of metal about ten by ten centimeters square and a centimeter thick. To start, let's make it about three-fifths nickel and one-fifth of each of the other two metals."

Merlin and William placed their hands together, concentrated, then brought them part, forming a corner at each one of their hands and creating a sheet of the yellowish-silver alloy.

Elkhart picked up the sheet. "Not too dense." He walked out into the hallway. "Merlin, come with me."

Merlin followed him out into the street.

Elkhart set down the sheet on the cobblestone. "Hit it as hard as you can with… a tungsten club."

Merlin gave Elkhart a confused look. "Why?"

"I'm testing the alloy before I actually use it," Elkhart explained. "Please?"

Merlin nodded and extended a fist toward the sheet. Then a tungsten club extended from his fist, rapidly slamming into it. He retracted the club. The sheet was dented slightly, while the stone beneath it had been pulverized. "How was that?" he asked.

"Well, I like the strength, it's not too dense…" a steel visor materialized on his face, and a magical thermometer in his hand. He then produced a blue flame from his other hand and engulfed the sheet for about a minute, then stepped back to reveal a molten hunk of metal and stone.

"Won't the city guards be mad if they find out you've been using the street as a personal forge?"

"It'll be fine. In fact, I think I've made this spot a lot smoother. However, that flame wasn't supposed to melt the sheet. Come on." Elkhart headed back inside, and Merlin followed.

As they entered Elkhart's room, William stood up. "What were you doing out there?"

"Testing the alloy's strength and heat tolerance," Elkhart replied. "It failed the heat test. Now, I want you to make another sheet, this time with the same amount of tungsten, but only one-tenth copper and seven-tenths nickel."

Merlin and William nodded, and did something similar. The yellow was a little more faded this time.

Elkhart picked up the sheet. "This is a bit lighter, which is good. Come on, Merlin." They headed back out into the street. "Of course, if we're too careless, we might get arrested for disturbing the peace, since we're making loud noises and producing really bright flames in the dead of night." He set down the sheet. "Same procedure as before."

Merlin slammed the tungsten club down on the sheet. This time, it made a slightly bigger dent, but still proved to be tougher than the pure tungsten.

"Good." Elkhart once again requipped his visor and blasted the sheet with flames. When he was done, what remained was a brightly glowing, but still intact, sheet of metal. He scanned the sheet with his thermometer, then stood up and turned to Merlin. "Now hit it again, but beware of sparks. In fact, don't hit it quite as hard."

Merlin hit the sheet a bit more gently, jumping back as sparks flew in his direction. He couldn't clearly see what sort of depression he had made this time, as it was still brightly glowing.

Elkhart drew some water from the canal, dousing the sheet and creating a steam cloud. He then cleared away the cloud with his wind magic and picked up the sheet, assessing the damage. The topside had lost its yellowish color, and was now completely silver, save for the dent Merlin had made while it was still hot, which showed the sheet to be slightly weaker than his tungsten club at that temperature. "Well, the nickel and copper on the surface boiled away," he evaluated. "Otherwise, it's as good as it's going to get. I think it will withstand the flames of most mages. Let's go inside." As they headed into Elkhart's apartment, Elkhart plopped the damaged sheet in front of William. "This recipe works," he declared. "Well, except for one thing, but that one thing is easily fixed." He grabbed a few sheets of paper with schematics for various parts. "Remember, seven parts nickel, two parts tungsten, and one part copper. And then I want you to coat it with a layer of pure tungsten a tenth of a millimeter thick. I already adjusted the measurements to work for Nashi. This is what they have to equal after the coating. You up to the task?"

"Yeah," William replied. "We've helped you make machines this finely tuned before…"

"…and we can do it again." Merlin finished William's sentence.

Elkhart grinned. "Looks like the Blue Steel Twins are back in business."

* * *

Nashi opened her eyes. She tried moving her right arm under her side to push herself up, then remembered she no longer had a right arm. She reached down to the mattress with her left arm, and clumsily hoisted herself into a sitting position. She looked over at where Elkhart was working, and was surprised to see the twins asleep on the floor next to him. "What are they doing here?" she asked.

Elkhart turned around, and Nashi could see that he was holding a silver-colored assembly of parts. Then Elkhart looked down at the twins. "Oh, them? Since I couldn't make the alloy at the blacksmith's shop, I had them synthesize it for me. It's slightly heavier than steel, and needs a tungsten coating to protect the surface from boiling away at higher temperatures, but it should work." He held up what he had so far. "I also had them make a tungsten-lacrima alloy for the wiring. As you can see, I've completed the upper arm and the elbow joint, as well as the nerve hub."

Nashi nodded. "So how long is Hisoka's anti-sleep spell supposed to last?"

"A total of one week," Elkhart replied. "He said any longer and it could kill him."

Nashi nodded and stood up, heading to the door. "I'm going to go get some exercise."

"Please do," Elkhart agreed. "This may be your arm I'm working on, but I still work better when alone."

* * *

"I guess this would be the symbol of the rat, then," William said to herself. It had been three days since Elkhart had begun work on Nashi's arm. She and Merlin had already made all of the parts, and now William was working on transcribing Nashi's book into West Common. "This would be 'animation'…"

A crash sounded on the floor above William, breaking her focus. She glared up at the ceiling, then crossed the guild library and climbed the stairs up to the main guild hall.

"Would you quiet down, please?!" she demanded to Emma and Nashi, who were once again fighting. Nashi still didn't have her new arm, as Elkhart was still assembling it, but it didn't seem to change the fact that neither of them seemed to be anywhere near winning or losing.

Emma and Nashi ignored William's request and continued fighting. Suddenly, two iron poles with tungsten-coated tips slammed into the girls, pinning them to the far wall.

"What did I just tell you?" A terrifying look crossed William's face as she stood there, holding Emma and Nashi. Merlin's eyes widened in fear, while Gildarts raised an eyebrow, curious as to how this would play out. "I'm trying to concentrate. No fighting! And Nashi, this is your book we're talking about. Do you want me to translate it or not?"

Emma just stared back at William, shocked that she was being told off by her younger sister. She slowly nodded, not knowing how else to deal with this situation.

"Sorry…" Nashi croaked weakly.

"Thank you." William retracted the poles, then turned and headed back downstairs.

"I didn't know your sister could be scary," Nashi commented.

"Neither did I," agreed Emma. "I guess she's really determined to get this done."

Merlin just stared at the stairs to the guild library, not saying anything, then slowly turned around and resumed eating.

* * *

"There." Elkhart requipped out of his visor and gloves, then put the blowtorch down. "I've brazen it to the bone. Time to connect the nerves." He pulled out a tiny pair of tweezers and started fiddling around, occasionally looking at the reference sketch he had made.

"Gyah!" Nashi shouted as he connected the first nerve.

"Sorry. I forgot to tell you that it's a painful process."

"I-It's fine," Nashi wavered. "I can… kii! I can handle it."

Elkhart connected a few more nerves, Nashi reacting painfully to each one, then stopped and pulled out one of his remote charge lacrima. This one glowed blue as it was charged with Hisoka's healing magic. He pulled out another one and dropped them down a pair of holes he had made on the inside of the arm. "These are for regrowing the severed muscles," he explained. The holes filled up with water, and when it filled up high enough to almost touch the muscles. "Okay, now move the muscles you would normally move to bend your elbow."

Nashi's biceps contracted, while the triceps relaxed and dipped into the water. Elkhart kept the metal arm bent to represent what Nashi's muscles were trying to do. The water then turned into muscle tissue, which extended down into the hole Elkhart had made just for that purpose.

"Now, unbend your elbow."

This time, the arm straightened out as Nashi's triceps pulled on the joint, while her biceps relaxed and underwent the same process as it dipped into the water and regrew into the fully-formed muscles.

"I designed the arm with those lacrima in mind. They're not coming out, and will actually store extra magic alongside the main two lacrima I put in the forearm."

"I see."

"Now I can connect the rest of the nerves."

Nashi's eyes widened. Then she sighed. "Oh, joy."

Elkhart continued to connect the nerves, getting a pained reaction from Nashi each time he got one into place, to the point where she was relatively dazed, and then pulled on the blood vessels so that they dipped into what was left of the healing water. They started growing down the newly-reformed muscles and then back up to form a complete circuit, planting smaller blood vessels in the muscles as they went. Elkhart then removed the clamps he had used to prevent bleeding. "Again, sorry the anesthetic wasn't strong enough for the nerves."

"It was nothing."

Elkhart rolled his eyes. "I could see that you were struggling not to pass out from the pain."

Nashi looked to one side. "Whatever."

Elkhart requipped back into the gloves and visor, then picked the blowtorch back up and used his other hand to pull the skin of Nashi's arm back up to touch the metal. As the last of the healing water assimilated into Nashi's bodily fluids, the skin partially regrew to make the task easier as Elkhart brazed the metal to the flesh. He then took a scalpel and began carefully peeling off the skin up to an inch from where the metal was welded, leaving bare flesh.

Nashi raised an eyebrow in confusion. "What's that for?"

Elkhart picked up a pair of tungsten half-rings that were five centimeters wide and about a half-centimeter thick. "This. It's a brace." He placed the half-rings together around where the metal ended at the flesh began. He then welded the two halves together, then brazed the brace to the prosthetic, and then to Nashi's flesh. He stepped back, set the blowtorch down and requipped out of the gloves, apron and visor. "Okay! One last step, and we'll be done." He placed his thumb on the back panel of the forearm. "Tē Aperio." A hatch opened up next to his thumb, revealing an array of what looked like screw heads. He took out a screwdriver. "Now, hold up both hands close together."

Nashi held them up.

"Close your eyes, and bend both wrists forward the same amount." As Nashi obeyed, the right hand went forward a bit more than the left. "Okay, a bit too sensitive there…" Elkhart took the screwdriver and turned one of the heads to the left a bit, then straightened both of Nashi's hands. "Okay, now do it again." This time, the right wrist bent slightly less than the left, and Elkhart turned the head ever-so-slightly to the right. Once again, he straightened Nashi's hands. "And again." This time, they both went the same amount. "Okay, we're good there. Now, swivel both of your forearms." They repeated this process with all of the joints in the forearm, wrist, hand and fingers, and Elkhart carefully calibrated the motor sensitivity of each joint. He then set the screwdriver down and placed his thumb on the same spot as before. "Sempiterne Tē Consigno." The hatch closed, and a blue light shined briefly on the indentation where it had opened up, smoothing it out as if it hadn't been there. "Done! You can leave now."

Nashi opened her eyes, stood up and lifted her new arm. "It's a bit heavier than my old arm," she noted, "but I can live with it."

"Oh, and tell Emma that if she takes a single bite out of that arm, she will face my wrath."

Nashi's eyes widened briefly, and then she grinned. "Will do!"

"Also, you'll notice that only the palm and the fingers will detect touch. It would have taken too long to go any further. Also, the only things it can detect are basic touch and the amount of pressure being applied. It can't detect things like temperature or feel any pain."

Nashi nodded. "While there are going to be some drawbacks to that, it may also come in handy!"

"Also, Hisoka's anti-sleep spell wears off in a few hours, which means he'll probably be waking up around then. Maybe you could show off your new arm to him."

Nashi laughed. "As if. Why would I boast specifically to him? I'm gonna show it to everyone!" She exited the blacksmith's workshop while Elkhart turned to the blacksmith.

"Thanks for letting us use your place."

"No problem," the blacksmith replied. "That's an interesting alloy… looks like tungsten, but it's much lighter."

"It's tungsten-coated," Elkhart replied. "Although you're right. I invented the alloy underneath myself." He turned and headed home.

* * *

The dark grey dragon landed in the clearing in front of the Fairy Tail guild hall, and a young man with bright red hair jumped down from his back.

"And, as you can see, this is the main guild hall," the man notified as people poured out through the doors to comprehend the sight of this.

"Akane, what is the meaning of this?" Erza demanded.

"Greetings, master," Akane cheerfully replied to Erza. "This is Torden."

"Hello," Torden greeted Erza. "I would like to join your guild."

Almost everyone watching reacted with extreme surprise, save for Erza, as well as a certain group of dragonslayers who had already known about this, and a few guild members who weren't easily surprised.

Erza smiled and looked up at Torden. "Well, it's always nice to have new guild members. Welcome to the guild."

"Interesting," Mirajane mused. She turned to Erza. "I'm curious. Due to how powerful dragons are, would he automatically be granted S-class status?"

"Absolutely not!" Erza replied in a bit of a snappy tone. "He'll have to earn it like everyone else."

Torden grinned. "Sounds fun to me."

Nashi pushed her way through the crowd and burst out into the clearing. "Akane, look!" She held up her newly-constructed right arm.

Akane tilted his head. "I thought Elkhart said that would take him two weeks."

"We helped." Merlin and William strode into the clearing.

"And me, of course." Hisoka came out after them.

"And where's Elkhart?" Akane asked.

"Asleep in his room," Hisoka replied. "So, shall we prepare for the Grand Magic Games?"

* * *

 **Well, sorry that chapter was a bit boring. I felt the need to describe the process of making Nashi's new arm. The next chapter should be much better. But regardless, hope you enjoyed!**


	25. GMG Arc - Final Preparations: part 2

"Well? What do you think?"

Akane looked at the large white guildmark that was now on Torden's side, then smiled. "I like it. Do you, by any chance, plan on participating in the Games?"

Torden shook his head. "I feel that I could easily win most of them, except against Elkhart. It would end up being rather boring."

Akane nodded. "That is a fair point. But will you at least watch us?"

"That I will," Torden confirmed. "Actually, I've heard that dragonslayers tend to get horrendously motion sick on vehicles, but are perfectly fine on living creatures."

"That would be correct."

Torden sat down, raising a foreleg and stroking his chin. "Perhaps you would like a ride from me? After all, the Games start in six days, and you would want enough time to get registered."

"Seriously?"

Torden nodded. "After all, I plan on going anyway, and the only plausible way I could get there is by flying. Therefore, it makes sense."

Akane nodded. "Yeah. You're right. I'll go talk to the others."

* * *

William stood up, slamming her pen down on the table. "Done!" She picked up the original copy, as well as the translated copy, and headed up the stairs. As she crossed the guild hall, she nearly ran into Akane, but came to an abrupt stop in the nick of time. "Akane!" she greeted. "Um… excuse me… I was just about to deliver these to Nashi."

"Right. Sorry." Akane stepped out of the way, but then stopped her as she began to head out the door. "Oh, by the way, Torden is offering to give the members of Dragon King a ride to Crocus. I was actually going around telling everyone. Do you know where your siblings are?"

William pointed out Merlin and Emma at a nearby table.

Akane thanked William and turned to her siblings. "Did you hear that?"

"Yep. We heard it," confirmed Merlin.

Akane then headed after William. "I will say that the last time I saw Nashi, she was over at the park with Hisoka – something about getting her shoulder muscles accustomed to her new arm – and I still need to tell both of them about Torden's offer anyway, so… I guess I'll go with you."

"Okay." William continued walking with Akane. They navigated the busy streets, slowly making their way towards Magnolia Park. "I notice you're able to walk for a bit longer now," Akane suddenly mentioned.

William nodded. "Hisoka was able to repair some muscle tissue, as well as partially repair most of my vital organs. Unfortunately, most of the damage has been around for too long to be repaired."

Akane smiled. "Well, he did his best, and now you're a bit better off because of it."

William nodded and smiled back at Akane. "Yeah, I guess so."

* * *

Nashi swung her fist at thin air, grunting in pain as she felt her shoulder dislocate once more

Hisoka walked over, placed one hand on her shoulder and, using the other hand to grab her arm, wrenched the joint back into place. Then he began using his magic, making sure to repair and strengthen the muscles. "You know, I could try repeatedly damaging and repairing the muscle, instead of you deliberately dislocating the joint. That would be less likely to cause permanent damage, and I could strengthen the muscles a lot more quickly."

"Perhaps." Nashi plopped herself on the ground. "However, right now I'd like to take a break."

Hisoka glanced down at her for a second, then looked up to see Akane and William approaching. "Ah, what brings you two here?"

"Well, I came to give Nashi this." William held up the translated copy of the Easter Zodiac guide.

"And I came to tell you both that Torden has offered us a ride to Crocus," Akane added.

Nashi stood up and walked over to William, taking the translated copy and flipping through it. She looked back at William and smiled warmly. "Thanks."

"Anytime," replied William. She sat down in the grass and looked up at Hisoka. "Thanks for doing what you could, by the way. That was a ten-minute walk and I didn't need Akane to carry me at all."

Akane sighed. "But I will admit I kinda miss carrying you."

William rolled her eyes. "Well, I nearly hit my limit during that walk, so you don't have to worry about that."

Akane frowned. "You know, it's kind of depressing when you put it that way."

William sighed. "Okay, how about this: I will occasionally let you carry me around even when I don't need you to."

Akane pouted. "Now you're just pitying me."

"Well, what do you want me to do?!"

"I don't know! This started with me saying I'd grown attached to carrying you."

"You just said you'd miss it, not that you'd grown attached!"

Akane's cheeks turned pink as he realized what he had said. "W-Well… whatever!"

Hisoka watched them deliberately turn away from each other, both folding their arms, then laughed.

Akane and William glared at Hisoka. "What's so funny?!" William demanded.

"Sorry…" Hisoka covered his mouth, trying to contain his laughter. "I just thought about that argument. Arguments tend to come out of people getting ticked off at each other, but that one…?"

Akane and William both raised an eyebrow at Hisoka.

"Sometimes, however, it's the exact opposite," Hisoka continued "Sometimes, two people will argue because they truly care about each other. I mean, Akane, you would miss carrying William because it's something you can do to help her. William, you wanted to give Akane back that feeling of helping you when he didn't get to do it as often. You two were trying to show each other how much you care."

Nashi grinned at Hisoka. "That sounded a bit weird, but well said."

Akane and William exchanged glances, then both looked away, blushing slightly.

"Anyway…" Hisoka changed the subject. "…when can Torden take us?"

"Whenever I can gather everyone together," replied Akane. "The trip should only take a few hours, so we don't need any provisions – just stuff we'll want with us in Crocus."

Hisoka nodded. "And will Elkhart be coming with us? I know he's not technically a member of the Dragon King, but he is kind of a part of the team."

Akane shook his head. "Elkhart already departed with the most of Fairy Tail. The only remaining members are those who chose to stay at home and watch it on LacrimaVision."

"I see. Well, let's do that, shall we?"

"By the way, do you know where Henri went?" asked Akane. "She's the only one I haven't told about Torden's offer."

"Henri already left to get us registered," Hisoka replied. "We'll be meeting her in Crocus."

* * *

"Ready?" Torden asked.

"Are you sure you can hold me with this arm?" asked Nashi.

"Relax," Hisoka reassured. "It's only thirty extra pounds compared to your old arm."

Nashi rolled her eyes. "I know. I was joking." She climbed up to join the others on Torden's back, followed by Hisoka.

"Hold on," Torden warned. "I'm about to take off." Everyone grabbed onto Torden's spines as he spread his wings and rapidly accelerated to an incredible speed.

"Nashi, where did you put that guide?" asked William.

"Don't worry. It's in my bag."

The flight was rather uneventful for the next few hours. Surprisingly, Emma and Nashi managed to refrain from fighting each other for the entire trip, possibly because they were on a dragon's back and would probably fall to their death.

"There!" Nashi pointed.

Everyone looked, and sure enough, in the distance, they could see a gigantic, sprawling city, with the castle Mercurius towering high above everything else.

"We're here," Merlin beamed.

Suddenly, something gray slammed into Emma's face. "What the…?!" she pulled it off to discover the familiar exceed who always managed to move directly into the path of high-speed projectiles. Emma rubbed her nose in pain, while Henri showed them a large book.

"This tells you everything you need to know about the Grand Magic Games," Henri explained.

"Right," Akane acknowledged. "Any idea where a dragon could land in this city without destroying anything?"

"Well, the living quarters we've been assigned just so happens to be right next to a plaza," Henri suggested, "so that would probably be perfect."

"And where would that be?" asked Thomas.

"Can I direct your dragon?"

They continued on, Torden slowing down to follow Henri, until they landed gently in the plaza Henri had described.

"Come on. I'll show you to our living quarters." Henri flew over to a small, brownish-grey building – even smaller than a typical house, took a key out, and opened the door. As the others went inside, she pulled out seven more copies of the key and gave one to each of the others. "Don't lose this. I don't know if I can get you any more copies."

Inside were eight beds. Everyone who had been carrying bags of any sort immediately claimed a bed and dropped their luggage on it.

"Alright!" Hisoka immediately walked back out the door. "Time to go exploring!"

"Yeah, a town like this…" Akane followed him, as well as Emma and Thomas. "There must be tons of amazing things to eat!"

Thomas briefly turned back to the other four. "Are any of you guys coming?"

"I think I'm going to read through this guide." Nashi pulled the translated pages to her Eastern Zodiac guide out of her bag. "I want to be able to use these powers in the Games."

"I'm just going to rest for a bit." Merlin plopped himself down on a bed, then pulled out a book from his bag. "Maybe study a new language for my solid script…"

"Same," William agreed. "Oh, and by the way…" she pulled out a pair of wind-reading glasses and handed them to Nashi. "You'll want these." She pulled out another pair. "In the meantime, I will be using this pair."

"I thought you only had one pair," Merlin pointed out, confused.

"I have a spare, in case I lose the other one," William explained. She put on the other pair and pulled out a book of her own.

"I think I'll stay here as well," Henri decided. "I've expended enough energy going and getting us registered."

Thomas nodded and followed the others.

* * *

Hisoka and Akane looked up at the restaurant sign.

"That's a fancy name for a restaurant," Hisoka mused. "I'll bet the food there's expensive."

"No. I can see the menu from here. It's not that expensive."

Hisoka looked back at Akane and grinned. "Then what do you say we eat?"

"You guys can do that," Thomas proclaimed. "I'm more interested in exploring the castle."

"I'd just like to wander around town," Emma testified. "Maybe we should split up. I don't think wandering around a large city alone should be too dangerous for a well-trained wizard."

Hisoka nodded. "You have a point there. Alright, then. You two do what you want."

While Thomas flew off and Akane and Hisoka walked into the restaurant, Emma headed off with no particular destination in mind. Eventually, a familiar smell hit her nose. She turned, trying to pinpoint the direction, and followed it, grinning happily when she discovered the source.

"Eallesander!" she greeted. "Nice to see you again."

Eallesander turned, startled, then recognized Emma and smiled. "How have you been?"

"Oh, you know, the usual." Emma glanced around at the various people passing by. "So, you gonna be in the Games?"

"For now, I'm saying yes," Eallesander replied. "We do, however, have a replacement team member ready in case I change my mind."

Emma nodded. "I hope you don't change. I'm really interested in competing with you."

"And thanks to your enthusiasm, I've also become interested."

Emma looked around. "Well, want to explore the city together."

Eallesander took a moment to think about this, then nodded. "Sure. That would be fun."

Emma smiled warmly. "Alright! Have you ever been to the palace gardens, by any chance?"

Eallesander shook their head. "I've barely visited Crocus at all…"

Suddenly, Emma grabbed Eallesander's hand and pulled them along. "Come on! It's really pretty."

Eallesander was startled by this sudden gesture from Emma, but then collected themself and ran after her.

* * *

Nashi walked out into the Domus Flau arena. The stands and arena were both empty, meaning that she could practice her new abilities in peace. She looked back up at Torden. "Thanks for the ride!"

"Anytime!" Torden shouted from the statue he was perched on top of.

Nashi raised her right arm. "Karyuu no Tekken!" she swung her flame-engulfed fist at nothing in particular. The metal arm channeled her magic flawlessly. "Nice. It works even better than my old arm!" she then raised her left arm – the one with the tattoos. "Okay, now let's try these out…" she closed her eyes, concentrating. "Gate of the dragon, enhance my flames… Lóng!" One of the symbols began glowing, as well as the green line below it. "Karyuu no Houkou!" Nashi unleashed her breath weapon into the sky, creating a cone of flame much larger than any she had ever created. Torden stared, wide-eyed, as this was larger even than the flames of most fire dragons. "Nice," Nashi admired after the flames subsided. "Now, how about this? Gate of the sheep, separate me from my body… Yáng! The glow on the dragon and fire symbols subsided, and was replaced by that of another symbol, as well as the red line. Suddenly, her body collapsed, leaving an astral projection that was only visible by the orange, translucent, glowing surface. "Nice!" Astral-Nashi looked down at herself. "Although, it's weird that my astral form would also have the metal arm."

"Well, to be fair, you've also retained your clothing," Torden pointed out.

Nashi looked up at Torden. "You know what? You're right!" She looked back down at her astral body. "I hadn't noticed that."

"It would seem you retain the form of what you perceive to be your real body. That's why."

Nashi nodded. Then her astral form disappeared and her body woke back up. The tattoos stopped glowing as she stood up. "Well, I think I'll wait until I actually fight, and then try out some of the others. Let's go back."

* * *

Hisoka opened his eyes and looked up. He could see a royal guard staring down at him. He sighed and swam to the surface of the pond, climbing out. "Is there a problem?" he asked.

"No swimming in that pond."

"I was meditating."

The guard's eyes narrowed. "Don't you play word games with me, boy!"

Hisoka put up his hands. "My apologies. So you don't want me in that pond." He turned and headed off towards the hotel. "I should be getting back to my lodgings anyway. It's getting late." It was, after all, the last day before the Games, which meant the elimination round started at midnight, and it was already eleven thirty.

The guard sighed and walked off in the opposite direction.

Hisoka looked around and eventually decided to pay a visit to Fairy Tail. He walked over to Bar Sun, where a bunch of them were hanging out, and opened the doors. "Wuuaaaaauuggghhh!" He leaped out of the way as Gray rode a board on top of some beer barrels out into the street in nothing but his underwear, crashing into a lamppost.

As Gray slowly stood up, he looked over at Hisoka. "You just had to open that right at that moment, didn't you?!" He ran back inside with the board and barrels, while Hisoka went in after him.

"What in the name of Mavis are you doing?"

"Beer barrel surfing!" Erza shouted in response. "Me next!" She snatched the items from Gray, then set them up and leaped on top, rolling across the room and crashing into the wall.

"My turn!" Elfman declared. "Every man must do this!" He took the board and barrels as Erza recovered, and went through a similar process, crashing into the wall right next to Hisoka.

"Wait a minute! I can't let the adults have all the fun!" Elkhart strode over, set the board and barrels back up, and leaped on, this time rolling directly towards the bar. The board slid across the counter and slammed into the shelf behind, taking Elkhart with it.

Hisoka turned to Erza. "Isn't your son normally more introverted than this?"

"He was dared by Merlin to eat an entire strawberry cake," Erza replied. "But to be fair, I think he would have eaten it regardless. Anyway, now his system's full of sugar."

"Oi, now let your dad have a bit of fun." Suddenly, Hisoka realized Jellal was here as well as the blue-haired man reached over the bar and grabbed the board, setting up the barrels once again and leaping onto the setup. "Look out!" He crashed into the wall like all the others.

"Also, Jellal had a bit too much to drink."

"Wait… what's Jellal doing here?"

"Did you not hear?" inquired Erza. "Crime Sorciere has been given permission to participate in the Grand Magic Games this year."

"But they're an independent guild."

"And these days, they do a few jobs for the kingdom and the council."

Hisoka nodded, then grinned as he thought of something. He ran over to where Jellal was recovering from his crash, and set up the barrels himself. "This looks like fun. I'd like a bit of it." He leaped onto the setup, then started to get motion sick as he rolled across the room. He fell off and tumbled across the floor while the barrels and board crashed into the wall. "Not… a good… idea…" he groaned. He got to his feet and watched as Elkhart climbed back over the bar. As he saw Hisoka, he ran over.

"Hisoka, my dad's here! Did you hear they get to be in the Games this year? Hey, I haven't seen you all week. How are things?"

Hisoka put up his hands for Elkhart to slow down. "Too much sugar, alright? That's an entire strawberry cake you ate."

"Sorry. But yeah, you're right! All this sugar in my blood has me really fired up! I feel like I could go beer barrel surfing all night!"

Hisoka sighed and pointed to the clock on the wall. "Unfortunately for you, we need to be at our lodgings in ten minutes."

Elkhart stared at the clock, wide-eyed. "Crap… you're right!" He immediately dashed through the doors.

Gray had a similar reaction. "Woah!" He ran out the door, not even bothering to grab his clothes.

Hisoka sprouted his wings and flew out the door, up above the rooftops. Eventually, he was able to spot the plaza where Torden was sleeping, and glided towards it. He landed in front of the door to Dragon King's lodgings and stepped inside.

"Hisoka, where have you been?!" Akane demanded. "We were worried you wouldn't make it in time."

"Well, I'm here now," Hisoka pointed out. He looked around the room, smiling as he saw that everyone was present. "Well, then, this is it. This is the moment we've been waiting for. We're going to find out whether a guild made of dragonslayers can dominate other guilds! These are the final days of Dragon King as a separate guild – the Dragon King Festival!"

Akane nodded in acknowledgement, followed by everyone else.

"When I agreed to this, I thought it was a cool idea," Nashi described. "On this evening, right before the Games, I still think it's a cool idea. Now let's make it through the elimination round!"

"I have enjoyed every moment of this guild's existence," William chimed in. "And while I am not going through this round with you, I will be proudly watching as a member of this guild. Don't let me down!"

The bell chimed once.

"Let's bring it in…" Hisoka reached out with one arm, his hand open and facedown. The others walked towards him and placed their hands on top of his while the bell continued to chime. Henri and Thomas floated to the center in order to be able to reach it with their paws. "Go! Dragon King!"

"Go! Dragon King!" the others repeated as the bell chimed a twelfth time. Everyone raised their hand in the air as the building lifted itself into the air. Hisoka opened the back door, and they all walked onto the balcony as the floating path materialized from the giant floating ball of paths and mechanisms to where they stood.

A giant hologram of the pumpkin-headed mascot, Mato, appeared above the ball. "Attention, Grand Magic Games contestants! Welcome to the Labyrinth, the elimination round to narrow you all down to just eight teams. You know the drill: if you fall out, you're eliminated. The first eight teams to get to the exit get to move on to the Grand Magic Games."

Hisoka grinned excitedly. "This is it, guys."

"Oh, and a new rule. This year, we have several contestants with flying magic. You are allowed to use it once you have entered the labyrinth, but I will warn you that it may not be the best idea, since space within the labyrinth is warped. Are you ready?"

The contestants all around the city poised themselves to start running.

"On your marks… get set… go!"

"Let's go!" Akane, Emma, Hisoka, Merlin and Nashi charged towards the sphere.

* * *

 **This is it, guys! The moment we've been waiting for. I have nothing to say here. Just stay tuned for the next chapter. Hope you enjoyed!**


	26. GMG Arc - The Labyrinth

The five dragonslayers dashed along the path, rapidly closing in on the labyrinth.

Suddenly, Akane and Hisoka stopped in their tracks, forcing everyone else to stop as well.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" asked Akane.

"I think so," replied Hisoka. "I'll take the left, and you take the right."

"What are you…?" began Merlin.

"Kawatatsu no…"

"Shinkuryuu no…"

"…Houkou!" A torrent of water blasted to their left, and crimson energy to the right, knocking people off of the neighboring paths.

"Okay, let's keep going." They continued to dash forward.

"Isn't that against the rules?" Merlin asked.

"Actually, no," Hisoka replied. "There isn't any rule against knocking your opponents out before you enter the labyrinth!" They ran into the labyrinth and looked around.

"Any ideas?" asked Akane.

"If I remember correctly, the exit is at the center," Merlin noted.

"Wouldn't that be counterproductive?" asked Hisoka.

Merlin shook his head. "This thing bends space, remember? Follow me!" He ran along a certain path. "I'm good with mazes."

They let Merlin lead for a while, and then came to a dead end. "Remember what they said about flying in here. How are you all at jumping?"

The others gave some sign of self-affirmation.

"Over here!" He pointed to another ledge, backed up, then ran and jumped, scrambling onto a safe spot. It was weird seeing him standing at a different inclination than the rest of them.

Emma was next, doing a similar running jump and pulling herself to stable ground next to Merlin. Then Akane went, with a bit more trouble grabbing on, but he made it with Emma's assistance. Hisoka made the jump easily, immediately landing on his feet without losing his balance.

Nashi took a moment to evaluate the distance, then ran and jumped like the others. Unfortunately, she was still unaccustomed to the extra weight of her right arm, and miscalculated, barely swiping at the edge before falling.

"Nashi!" Hisoka shouted.

Suddenly, an iron pole shot down past Nashi. Without thinking, she grabbed it, at which point the pole retracted, lifting her back to the group.

"Emma?"

"Don't get me wrong," Emma asserted as the pole turned back into her arm. "You get on my nerves, but we unfortunately need you if we want to get to the exit."

Nashi nodded. "I would have done the same."

The group continued to follow Merlin, until they ran into another team of five.

"Fairy Tail?" one of the guys in the group inquired.

"Twilight Ogre?" Merlin glowered. Suddenly, he bludgeoned the guy who spoke with an invar pole. "Also, that's Dragon King!"

"Karyuu no Tekken!" Nashi made good use of her new right arm, bludgeoning one of the other Twilight Ogre members with a combination of flames and heated metal.

"Kawatatsu no Mori!"

"Shinkuryuuken!"

"Tetsuryuukon!"

All five of their opponents plunged toward the city street below, caught safely by some magenta magic circles, just like some other people to the North. Merlin looked over to see Elkhart with a few other Fairy Tail mages. Elkhart waved at them. Then they continued on their way.

"You know, we really should have checked those guys for a map," Nashi suggested as Dragon King continued on their way.

"We were already knocking them off. We'll try to think more carefully next time." Merlin continued leading them through the labyrinth's twists and turns, occasionally going down a slide or up a ladder.

Then, some red lights flashed and an alarm sounded.

Merlin's eyes widened. "Grab onto something, guys!" To demonstrate, he grabbed a nearby pole, and was joined by Emma, while Nashi gripped the ledge firmly, and Hisoka and Akane did the same, also spreading their wings in case absolutely necessary.

Suddenly, all of the various walkways and gears started shifting around. Nashi did much better this time at not falling.

"I wonder why we aren't getting motion sickness," Akane pondered.

"The labyrinth has anti-motion sickness magic," Hisoka replied. "In fact, it even has protective magic for those who are afraid of heights."

"Incredible." They all scrambled onto safe ground as the labyrinth stopped moving.

"Let's keep moving," Merlin commanded. "I can still tell where to go."

* * *

"I think I may be able to get us to the center in an instant," Elkhart offered.

The rest of the team turned to hear what he had to offer.

"My relativity magic allows me not only to manipulate the speed of light, but also detect areas of warped space," he explained. "I could maneuver through the distortions and…"

"But your meteor spell can't carry all of us," Asuka interrupted.

"It doesn't need to," Elkhart replied. "I wasn't going to use meteor."

"So what's your plan?" asked Gajeel.

"I'm going to throw you guys one at a time."

Romeo gave Elkhart a concerned look. "Um… are you sure you can lift any of us?"

Elkhart's eyes narrowed in exasperation. "I have my wind magic, remember?"

"Even so, I'm not sure I like the idea of being thrown through a labyrinth that warps space," Mirajane complained.

"Just trust me, okay? I can sense the distortions in space, and I can also reduce the speed of light to provide a shorter path."

Everyone stared at Elkhart, confused.

Elkhart palmed his forehead. "Look, I don't know how to explain it to someone without a preexisting understanding of this, but basically, as you approach the speed of light, space seems to flatten in front of you, and physics actually behaves as if you have a shorter distance to travel."

They all continued to stare at Elkhart.

"Look, just…" Elkhart dropped to the floor, and created a sphere of reduced light speed. Then he generated a gust of wind that sent the rest of his team flying upward. Then he activated his meteor spell, chasing after them so as to keep them within his sphere. As he had said it would do, the view in front of them seemed to flatten out in front of them, reducing the distance significantly as they crashed into the center of the labyrinth. Elkhart landed on his feet, deactivated his relativity sphere and looked around. Sure enough, there was the exit up ahead.

The others got up, slowly regaining their bearings. A few of them rubbed themselves in spots that had been injured in the crash.

"Can't you be a little more gentle?" complained Gajeel. "Also, I'm pretty sure we didn't agree to that."

"You can thank me later," Elkhart replied. "I decided showing would be more effective than explaining. Now let's get to that exit." He ran towards the exit, while the others exchanged glances, then ran after him.

* * *

Nashi grabbed the hand that was clutching the piece of paper. "I'll be taking that now." She snatched it away from the Greenblade member, unfolded it, and found that it was indeed a map. "Thanks! Now you can join the rest of your team." She kicked him off the ledge, where he plummeted out of the labyrinth and was caught by a magenta magic circle.

Suddenly, the sirens blared.

"Grab onto something!" Merlin grabbed a nearby door, while Hisoka and Emma grabbed onto the ledge. As the labyrinth started moving, Akane dove toward the door Merlin was holding and barely managed to grab it, while Nashi gripped a dent near the edge that had been made in their recent fight.

The labyrinth turned until the team found themselves at the top, or at least, directly above the center. They weren't at the edge anymore, in which case they would have been considered on top.

"This way!" Merlin got up and started to run.

"Wait!" shouted Nashi.

"Hmm?" Merlin stopped in his tracks, wondering what Nashi had to say.

Nashi looked down at the center, then at the dent she had just been holding on to. "I just had an idea." She pointed at the dent. "We can destroy parts of the labyrinth."

"Right, but what does that have to do with anything?"

Nashi grinned evilly and pointed at the center. "And the parts of the labyrinth are what cause the gravitational distortions, right?"

"Uuhhh…" Merlin slowly began to realize what Nashi was thinking.

"So if we destroy everything in the path down to the center, gravity should pull us straight down there."

"Oh?" Emma smiled widely. "You know, when I agree with you, it gives me this weird tingling sensation."

Nashi grinned. "Well, then, now that we all agree with this…"

"I didn't agree," Hisoka pointed out.

"Nor did I," Akane chimed in.

"Or me," Merlin continued.

The girls ignored them, while Nashi raised her left arm. "Gate of the dragon, enhance my flames… Lông!" The dragon symbol and the green line on her arm started glowing, and she lowered that arm, then raised her right arm. Diving towards the center. "Karyuu no Ryuusei!" Her entire body lit up as she plunged toward her target, destroying everything in her path.

"Oi!" Emma called. "Don't steal all the fun!" She started spinning, and dove toward the center. "Testuryuuken!" As she spun around with her iron swords, she fell a bit more slowly than Nashi, as if her swords were behaving as propeller blades, but also significantly increased the radius of destruction.

Hisoka stared down at the center as the two girls landed with a crash. "Huh. That actually worked." He sprouted his wings, and dove toward the center, landing softly next to Nashi and Emma, who were dusting themselves off from the impact. He looked at Nashi's right arm. "You know, I am thoroughly amazed you didn't damage that."

Nashi held up the metal arm and grinned. "Tougher than it looks, ain't it?"

Hisoka let out a small huff of laughter as Akane glided down, carrying Merlin.

"You know, that was probably one of the most reckless things I've ever seen either of you do," Merlin scolded.

Emma rolled her eyes. "Like you haven't done your fair share of reckless things."

Merlin sighed. He couldn't argue with that. "Anyway, thanks to that stunt you two just pulled, the exit's right over there." He pointed towards where a door was sitting with a sign above it reading "exit". "Let's go."

The group headed over to the door, where the pumpkin mascot, Mato, stood waiting as he applauded them.

"Congratulations-kabo!" he applauded. "You've made it through the elimination round-kabo."

Nashi grinned. "We made it first, right? There's no way anyone else would have pulled something like that."

Mato rubbed his chin, or what would have been his chin if his head weren't a pumpkin. "Actually, you came in third."

Hisoka tilted his head. "Okay, I'm curious. What sorts of stunts did the two teams before us pull to beat _that_?"

"Well, the Sabertooth B Team had a member who seemed to be able to fly through the labyrinth with relative ease, as well as carry all four of their friends."

"I'm guessing that was Eallesander," Emma deduced.

"I believe that was the name, yes. As for the Fairy Tail B Team, they seemed to have somebody warping space, and got here in second."

"That was definitely Elkhart," Merlin decided. "I know his magic all too well."

Nashi sighed. "Well, it was worth a try." She stepped up to the door and opened it, and then the others followed her through.

"Well, at least we made it," Hisoka mentioned. "Most of the people who even entered aren't going to be so fortunate. Besides, we all went to the trouble of forming a separate guild just so we could do this. I'm personally glad that didn't go to waste."

Nashi nodded. "It's fine. It wasn't that important that we were first."

Hisoka smiled. "Well, shall we go, then?"

The team continued through the tunnel until they came into a dimly lit room.

"I guess this is where we wait for the Games to begin," guessed Akane.

"It would seem so," agreed Emma. "You think it would be a good idea to sleep?"

"I don't think so," Merlin piped in. "We're dragonslayers, so we tend to sleep more than most humans. We'll probably only get about four hours, so we'll be really groggy in the morning."

"Well, remember that spell I used on Elkhart so he could get Nashi's arm done more quickly?" reminded Hisoka. "We could decide ahead of time who participates in the morning competition, and I could use it on that person. Then the rest of us could sleep."

"That could be risky. What if you were selected for the battle part? Besides, knowing the name of the contest kind of helps us know who might be best for the task."

"Not as much as sleep would help whoever is in that contest," Hisoka pointed out. "Also, it's only a one-in-five chance I'll be selected to fight."

"Right, but we need some way of getting an idea of who would be best for it."

"I think I have an answer to that. You see, I've spectated the Grand Magic Games every year since I first arrived on Ishgar. Not only that, but I've studied the contests and results of the Grand Magic Games from before I got here."

"We've also seen Grand Magic Games of the past," Merlin reminded. "What's your point, exactly?"

Hisoka sighed, then turned to Nashi. "You've seen my ability to track patterns, right?"

Nashi nodded. "Back when we fought that godslayer, he was able to predict where he would be and when, within ten minutes and a few hundred meters."

Merlin's eyes widened for a moment. "Really?"

Hisoka nodded. "Now, based on my observations, on the first day of the Games, the contestants with greater mental skill tend to do better on the first contest than the others. Merlin, I think this is your time to shine."

"Uh…"

"The Blue Steel Twins solved problems not only with their magic, but also with their brains, if I remember correctly. Also, from what I've observed, you seem to do quite well in situations that primarily require thinking. I think you would be the best choice."

Merlin nodded in understanding. "Yeah. I see what you mean. Come to think of it, I've also seen winning contestants use their brains more."

"So, you ready?"

"Yeah. Go ahead and do it. Just make it so I only need four hours of sleep."

Hisoka placed a hand on the side of Merlin's head. There was a blue glow, and the energy appeared to drain from Hisoka, while Merlin began to look slightly more refreshed. Then Hisoka laid him down and fell asleep.

"Well, I guess that's all that's left to do." Nashi fell asleep near him, followed by Emma, Akane and Merlin.

* * *

"In eighth place, we have Lamia Scale!"

Merlin opened his eyes as he heard the sounds of cheering. Suddenly, he realized what was going on, and rushed to wake the others. "Come on! We gotta go." The others groggily got up, then snapped to attention as they heard the cheers, while Merlin tried to wake Hisoka. "Come on!"

Hisoka groaned and sat up.

"And in seventh place: Sabertooth A Team!" called a voice outside.

Suddenly, Hisoka snapped to attention. "Oh! We've got to go!" He jumped to his feet to join the others as they ran along the corridor towards the entrance. "Sheesh, that was close."

"In sixth place: Fairy Tail A Team!"

The members of dragon king watched as Natsu, Lucy, Gray, Wendy and Gildarts strode onto the field.

"In fifth place: Hallowguard!"

Some wizards that they didn't recognize entered the field – well – except for one man whom they recognized as Utkarsh, the Hallowguard member who had outmaneuvered that requip mage back when they were fighting the Baildagch.

"In fourth place: Crime Sorciere!"

"What? But they're an independent guild."

"Erza explained it to me last night," Hisoka replied to Merlin. "They're being allowed to participate this year."

"I see."

"In third place…"

"That's us," Nashi whispered. They strode out into the stadium.

"…Dragon King!"

Hisoka looked around at the cheering spectators. This time, the cheering was substantially quieter, probably because they hadn't made themselves very well-known yet.

"In second place: Fairy Tail B Team!"

Elkhart and his team strode out onto the battlefield.

"And in first place: Sabertooth B Team!"

Emma grinned as she saw Eallesander stride onto the grounds with their team. Also among them was a kid whose hair looked almost exactly like Natsu's, other than the fact that it was blonde.

"Hiromi," Nashi whispered.

Hisoka looked at Nashi as she looked directly at the blonde kid. He could detect concern and recognition coming from her. "You know him?"

Nashi nodded. "That's my younger brother."

Hisoka looked over at Hiromi, wide-eyed, then back at Nashi. "But what's he doing in Sabertooth?"

"He made some friends there, and eventually ended up joining," Nashi replied. "Also, he's extremely powerful. Be careful if you go up against him."

Emma strode over to the Sabertooth B Team. "Eallesander! Nice of you to show up."

"Hey, Emma," Eallesander greeted.

Hiromi raised an eyebrow. "You two know each other?"

Eallesander nodded. "Emma was surprisingly friendly to me when we first met – friendlier than any human's ever been to me."

"I see." Hiromi looked up at Emma and smiled. "Well, the way you fight my sister all the time, it's interesting to see you being that friendly to someone you just met."

Emma pouted. "What do you know? You left Fairy Tail five years ago."

"And I have paid visits," Hiromi pointed out. "One last month, when you guys were all in the East, as well as one back in February."

Emma gave Hiromi a dirty look, then smiled at Eallesander. "Well, it's good to see you here in the Games."

Eallesander smiled back. "I would say the same to you."

Meanwhile, Elkhart jogged over to the Crime Sorciere team. "It's nice to see my dad's guild in the Games."

"I see you've grown a bit," Meredy mused

Elkhart's face twisted in sudden disappointment. "Right… a _bit_ … anyway, how's work been?"

"Oh, don't be like that," Meredy chided. "You're taller than Merlin, and he's a year older than you."

"By an inch. And you know Merlin's short for his age. He's fifteen, and he's five-foot-three."

Meredy sighed. "Well, as for your question, we were able to subdue that dark wizard in the North. The Council has arrested her."

Elkhart nodded, then stood there for a moment. After failing to come up with something else to say, he wandered over to Dragon King.

"Oh, hey, Elkhart," Merlin greeted.

"Hey. I just wanted to make something clear about that guildmark I designed."

"Hmm?"

"I promise to you guys that I will not use any of the magic I planted in there to my advantage during the Games. That's all." He headed back over to his team, while Emma finished her conversation with the Sabertooth wizards and rejoined Dragon King.

"Now that all of our contestants are situated," the voice on the loudspeaker continued, "let's get the day started. I'm your emcee, Chapati Rola, and the contest part of the first day is called: Cavern! Teams, please select your contestants."

Merlin turned to Hisoka momentarily. "I hope you were right about this." He stepped into the center.

"From Dragon King, we have Merlin Redfox!"

"It was, in part, my speed that got us through the elimination round," Sawyer pointed out to the rest of Crime Sorciere. "I will do this one."

"From Crime Sorciere, we have Sawyer!"

"I'll go up," Eallesander decided. "I'm still nervous about this whole thing, so I'd like to get the feel of it as soon as possible."

"From Sabertooth B Team, we have Eallesander!"

"I think I'll go," Gajeel declared. "No particular reason."

"From Fairy Tail B Team, Gajeel Redfox!"

People from various teams continued to step up.

"From Fairy Tail A Team, we have Lucy Heartfilia! From Lamia Scale, Yuka Suzuki! From Hallowguard, Ulsu Sakrav! From Sabertooth A Team, Rogue Cheney!"

"I'm having trouble staying awake," Hisoka murmured as he leaned against Nashi. "Can he hurry this up, please?"

"Now for the details of the competition: you will be trying to escape the caves beneath the castle Mercurius: Abyss Palace. Now, you don't have to worry about the Garou Knights, as they have temporarily cleared out for the purposes of this competition. However, if you are incapacitated, you are eliminated."

A magic circle formed under the contestants, and they dematerialized. Several LacrimaVision displays popped up around the arena showing the various contestants wandering through the green caves.

"Let the Grand Magic Games begin!"

* * *

 **Well, how are you liking this so far? These are the first moments of the X812 Grand Magic Games, and they are important both to me as a writer and the main characters, who formed a separate guild specifically for the Games. I'm going to say what I say at the end of all of these chapters, but I mean it now more than ever: I hope you enjoyed, and I hope you will continue to enjoy.**


	27. GMG Arc - Demon vs Dragon

Merlin wandered through the green-tinted caves, trying to locate a landmark. "Sheesh, this place gives me the creeps. No wonder this is where they execute prisoners." He continued walking until he came to a clearing where the floor was covered in the skeletal remains of what Merlin assumed were executed prisoners. He sighed. "Couldn't they at least clean up the place? I know nobody comes down here except to die, but… seriously? It's a mess." He pulled out a notepad and started to make a map, heading down one of the corridors to start off.

* * *

"Well?"

Porlyusica stood up from her examination and looked at William. "Well, thanks to Hisoka's healing magic, I think you will be able to participate in the Games… as a _reserve_ member. And please keep your use of dragonslayer magic to a minimum. That's a physically strenuous magic, and it could cause your permanent injuries to become worse."

William nodded in understanding.

"Hey, what was that I heard?"

William perked up to the sound of Emma's voice, then leaned back in surprise as all of Dragon King burst into the hospital room.

"Good for you, little sister!" Emma strode over and hugged William before she could stand up from the bed.

William's eyes narrowed. "First of all, I have a name. Second, weren't you going to watch the competition?"

Emma let go of William and raised a questioning eyebrow.

"And leave you all alone?" Akane questioned. "I don't think so. Besides, Hisoka used his anti-sleep spell on Merlin."

Hisoka nodded and looked over at Porlyusica. "You don't mind if I sleep in here, do you?"

"This is a hospital room, not a room-for-rent!" Porlyusica snapped. Then she looked down at Hisoka. "That doesn't mean you get to fall asleep on the floor!"

"I don't think he's waking back up," Nashi said. "That spell works by channeling his own energy into the recipient. He used it on Elkhart for a week, and then ended up sleeping for an entire week."

"And right when I was about to give him a stern talking-to on overusing his anti-sleep spell," Henri complained. "That's kind of ironic."

Porlyusica placed a hand on her forehead. "Well, anyway, yes. William may be a reserve member for your team."

William stood up from the bed and smiled at her teammates. Suddenly, Porlyusica clutched at her heart, her breathing becoming quick and irregular, and leaned against the wall.

"Oi, Porlyusica-san!" Thomas flew over. "Are you alright?"

"I'm… fine…" Porlyusica's breathing steadied. "I'm just a hundred and three, that's all. You realize not many people live that long, right?" She walked over to an unoccupied bed and sat down. "Although, to be perfectly honest, I probably should have taken on an apprentice quite some time ago. Perhaps I would have if it weren't for my dislike of humans."

"What about cats?"

Porlyusica looked at Thomas. "Well, I honestly don't have anything against cats. Are you suggesting I take you as an apprentice?"

Thomas nodded. "I trained with a local healer for about twenty years back on my home continent. My knowledge of medicinal practices here on Ishgar is limited, but I should be able to learn quickly based on the knowledge I do have."

Porlyusica thought for a moment. "Talk to me after the Games, okay?"

"Alright."

* * *

Sawyer raced along, when suddenly, the wall exploded in front of him, and he came to a halt as he saw that the rubble was red-hot.

"If you're incapacitated, you're out, right?" Eallesander speculated. "Therefore, if I incapacitate everyone, I would get first place without even having to find the exit."

"Redzone!" Sawyer tried slowing down time, then ran toward Eallesander.

"Um… what were you even trying to do there?" Eallesander jumped up and delivered a strong spinning kick to the side of Sawyer's head, sending him sprawling.

"You… weren't… affected…?" Sawyer panted as he got to his feet.

"Affected by what? You're going to have to tell me if you want me to understand." Eallesander shot around behind Sawyer, then grabbed the back of his neck, causing ice crystals to form. They let go of him, and he dropped to the cavern floor, unconscious. "Alright… that's one down, I guess." They dashed through the caves, trying to find another contestant, and eventually encountered a short man, almost as short as they were, with spikey blue hair and weirdly pointy eyebrows. "Yuka Suzuki of Lamia Scale, right?"

Yuka nodded. "I take it you're that one from Sabertooth who defeated the Baildagch general? Well, suppose you can't even use your magic!" A bluish, but mostly transparent sphere enveloped them both, giving a Eallesander a weird tingly sensation – sort of like back in Edolas, but with a high-energy vibrating sensation as well.

Eallesander once again facepalmed. "How many people do I have to tell that I don't use magic?" They extended a hand, and frozen nitrogen started frosting over it, then spilling off in liquid form and boiling off into a billowing steam cloud, as well as causing frost to form on the floor.

Yuka stared, wide-eyed. "But how…?" He was cut off as a black demonic hand reached through the cloud and grabbed his face.

"I literally just told you I don't use magic," Eallesander pointed out. "Why are you still acting surprised?" They jammed a knee into Yuka's stomach, sending him to the ground, coughing. Then they brought their hands together, forming a block of frozen nitrogen and holding it up against Yuka's stomach as he stood up. Then they rapidly heated up the nitrogen to about the temperature of a typical campfire, causing an explosion from the rapid thermal expansion which threw Yuka against a wall. He slumped to the ground, unconscious.

* * *

Torden watched the LacrimaVision from atop one of the statues with growing concern. "Merlin, I hope, for your own chances of winning this, that you don't encounter that fellow." He looked over at the screen with Merlin on it, and was shocked to see whom he _had_ encountered.

Merlin's eyes narrowed in exasperation as he stared at Gajeel. "This is messed up in so many ways."

"What's the matter?" Gajeel inquired. "Afraid to fight your own dad?"

Merlin shook his head. "Not particularly. I'd just rather fight someone less familiar to me." He leaped out of the way as one of Gajeel's iron clubs slammed into the ground where he had been standing. "And less boring. Kinryuukon!" A gold pillar extended from his arm and clipped a surprised Gajeel's shoulder.

Gajeel gave the club a surprised look. "That's not iron or steel."

"It's gold," Merlin replied as the pillar retracted back into his arm. "You see, when Will and I ate and processed the metals Elkhart was using to make Nashi's arm, we continued to be able to use them for much longer than we should have. We realized that those powers had stuck, and when we got to Crocus, we started eating various metals – gold, aluminum, titanium – although, the less of the metal is in our system, the more magic it consumes. That was just to show you the powers I've gained, and tungsten is about the same density as gold, but is much harder. Tangusutenryuukon!" A tungsten pillar shot towards Gajeel, who dodged it. "You can consume iron just fine. That's part of your magic. But other metals? That's a bit harder for you, isn't it?"

"Incredible," Gajeel beamed. "I was never able to do this sort of thing. I'm proud of you, son. However…" He grabbed Merlin's pillar, then lifted it up and slammed him against the cavern wall. "You won't achieve my level for another hundred years! Tetsuryuu no Houkou!" An extremely dense torrent of iron filings blasted Merlin.

"Chitanryuu no… Uroko…" Merlin dropped to the ground, covered in slightly scratched-up metal scales. "I told you already, I ate a few metals in the past week, titanium being one of them."

"My mistake," Gajeel apologized. "You won't achieve my level for another _ten_ years."

"Don't mock me," Merlin glowered. "Goukinryuuken!" Tungsten blades with titanium tips grew out of his arms, and he began swiping at Gajeel. "The fight's over when it's over. Don't talk to me about what my chances are."

"Well said. Tetsuryuuken!" Gajeel ducked under Merlin's blades, then formed some of his own, swiping at the ground below Merlin and knocking him off his feet. Gajeel then ran around behind him while he was still stunned and delivered a kick to the back of his neck, striking his brain stem and paralyzing him. Then he stood up and began to walk off. "However, even if you have a wider range of abilities than I do, my skills and magic power are greater than yours. I win this one."

"Aruminiumuryuu no…"

"Huh?" Gajeel turned just in time to see Merlin barely managing to turn his head in the general direction of his feet.

"…Houkou!" Shreds of aluminum blasted Gajeel into the air and pummeled him against the cavern wall, eventually doing enough to incapacitate him. He turned his eyes painfully toward his father. "Never… turn… your back… on your opponent. I can still… turn… my head…" He breathed painfully. "I guess… I'm stuck like this… for a few… minutes… but I'm still… in commission…" He laid there and waited for the feeling to return to his body.

* * *

Elkhart watched the LacrimaVision with surprise, then smiled. "It's truly incredible, the abilities that twins can gain," he mused to himself. "That ability to consume multiple metals may have something to do with his script magic."

"Umm… I'm not sure whether to count Merlin as out or not," Chapati admitted on the mic. "He can't stand up, but it's not because he's incapacitated. It's because he's been paralyzed."

"He incapacitated the very opponent who paralyzed him," Yajima pointed out. "And you heard him on the LacrimaVision. He's stuck like that for a few minutes. I would say at least give him that much time to regain the ability to move."

"Right you are, Yajima-san. Alright, Gajeel is incapacitated and gets two points for this competition. Merlin shall be considered restrained and is therefore not eliminated yet."

* * *

"You got lucky there, boy," Torden muttered. He looked down at the stands and realized there were a few people staring at him, surprised to see a live dragon sitting atop one of the statues at Domus Flau. "What are you staring at?" he demanded. "The Games are over there!" He pointed at the LacrimaVision screens.

Some people immediately turned back to the contest at hand, while others hesitated for a moment, then turned their attention back to the screens.

* * *

"Say, Akane?"

Akane turned to Natsu. "What?"

"So, you and Hisoka are fourth-generation dragonslayers, are you?"

"Yeah. Why?"

Natsu leaned over and sniffed Akane, who leaned back.

"Uh…"

"Weird. You don't smell artificial. You just smell like a very dragon-like human."

"What?"

"Well, you said you're a fourth-generation dragonslayer, but you don't seem like one."

Akane tilted his head in confusion. "Um, what do you think fourth-generation dragonslayers are?"

"Artificial soldiers made from dragonslayer lacrimas," Natsu replied. "We fought a bunch of them over in Stella Kingdom about twenty years ago – shortly before the Alvarez-Ishgar war."

"Oh, those things?" Akane chuckled to himself. "Those aren't their own generation of dragonslayers; they're just constructs. When we separate dragonslayers into different generations, constructs are their own separate thing."

"I'm not sure you have a place defining that."

"Except that we've been around for centuries."

Natsu nodded in understanding. "I see. So, what are fourth-generation dragonslayers?"

"Well, they're like first-generation," Akane explained, "except that we have our souls fused with those of fallen dragons. It's really hard to do, though. There are a bunch of factors to consider when predicting whether the dragonslayer in question will even survive. Having the same elements really helps with that, though my inner dragon's element was barely even similar to mine. He was a sage dragon, whereas I'm a crimson dragonslayer. That probably would have killed me if it weren't for my resistance to damage in general."

Natsu nodded. "So, do you generally learn stuff about the dragon's past life after soul fusion?"

"A bit," Akane replied. "Not automatically, though. Basically, it's possible to communicate telepathically, and you could learn stuff from that. Also, it's possible to undergo a temporary personality change if emotionally compromised, due to the dual souls, and I believe you can get fully possessed if you achieve dragon force."

"Well, I can see how that could be a disadvantage."

Akane nodded. "Hisoka told me a lot of dragonslayers back on his home continent declined to undergo such a process, even when presented an opportunity where their survival was essentially guaranteed."

"Mm." Natsu turned his attention back to the LacrimaVision, and his eyes widened. "That Ulsu kid is putting up quite the fight against Lucy, considering her age and how long she would have had to refine that magic."

"Still, though…" Wendy began.

Suddenly, Loke appeared out of nowhere to assist Lucy.

"…there's that."

"Indeed," Gray agreed. "Some of her more powerful spirits will summon themselves if Lucy's having a hard enough time."

They watched as Ulsu dissolved into shadows, then rematerialized behind Lucy, going for a surprise attack, but was blocked by Loke.

"Nice one!" Erza shouted as Lucy then proceeded to summon Virgo.

The two aimed kicks at Ulsu, but ended up swinging through shadow once again. Ulsu rematerialized again, this time further away, but was intercepted and struck in the face by Loke.

* * *

"Sheesh, why do you always make me do the dirty work?" Loke complained. "You know I don't like fighting women."

Lucy sighed. "An opponent is an opponent, Loke. And the battlefield is no place for flirting."

Loke sighed. "Fair enough. Regulus…"

Ulsu dissolved into shadows before Loke could strike her.

"…Glow!" A bright light shown from his ring, tearing through Ulsu's shadow form and forcing her to rematerialize.

Lucy and Virgo wasted no time, charging forward and each delivering a powerful kick to the stomach and the back of the head, respectively. As Ulsu fell to the cavern floor, Lucy turned to Loke. "I didn't know bright lights could do that."

"It depends on how powerful the given shadow mage is," Loke replied. "For example, it probably wouldn't work on Rogue."

"Then let's hope we don't meet him, then." Lucy started to walk forward, but was suddenly struck in the back of the head. She fell unconscious next to Ulsu.

"Who's that?" demanded Loke.

"Just someone who took advantage of their target letting their guard down." Out of the darkness stepped Eallesander. "You know, I'm kind of enjoying this, though I'd rather someone fight me with something that isn't designed specifically against magic. You see, I don't use magic, so people like that are a bit too easy."

"Are you thinking light of Lucy?"

Eallesander put up their hands. "No, nothing like that. The only reason she was easy was because I came in right when her guard was down. She probably could have taken me down if that had been fair. Anyway, there's not much point in fighting me at this moment. It won't give your summoner any extra points, since she's already eliminated." Before Loke or Virgo could react, Eallesander flew off at a blinding speed.

* * *

"Incredible."

"Indeed," Emma chuckled. "I can't wait to fight them myself."

Levy sighed. "That's kind of a reckless thing to say."

"Well, I know why they were able to move in Racer's slowed time field, as well as what their power is."

"Right. What is their secret, exactly?"

"I promised them I wouldn't tell anyone," Emma replied. "Sorry, but they're really uncomfortable with people knowing."

Levy nodded. "I hope I can trust your judgement."

"You can." Natsu looked over at the two of them. "It's nothing dangerous. I know it as well."

Levy nodded again. "Now I know I can trust your judgement."

Merlin walked through the corridor, rubbing the back of his neck. "Man, my dad can pack quite the punch." He stopped as he saw the exit doors before him. "Well, looks like I win this one." He walked forward, but was suddenly grabbed from behind by a swirl of shadows. "Crap!"

"Going somewhere?" Rogue inquired. "Sorry, but I'm afraid I'm going to win this one."

"Tangusutenryuuken!" Merlin swiped at Rogue with a tungsten blade, but met only shadows. Then Rogue materialized right in Merlin's face, grabbing him by the coat and throwing him against the wall. Then he slipped under the doors in shadow form.

"And Rogue escapes in first place, winning ten points for Sabertooth A Team!" Chapati shouted.

Everyone watched as Eallesander appeared on the scene, went right past a stunned Merlin, and placed a hand on the doors, causing a hole to melt through them. They leaped through the hole, leaving Merlin struggling to his feet and leaning against a wall.

"And that's eight points to Sabertooth B Team, as well as six points to Dragon King! That concludes Cavern, the first contest of the X812 Grand Magic Games!"

* * *

Emma, Nashi and Akane ran out to meet their teammate. "That was incredible, Merlin!" Emma exclaimed. "I didn't think you could beat dad."

Merlin nodded, rubbing the back of his neck some more. "I got lucky. He still had plenty of power left, and I used up almost all of mine in that single shot."

"You were indeed lucky," Gajeel agreed as he headed over to them. "However, you did well for going up against both me and Rogue, and I am proud."

"Thanks, dad." Merlin turned to his team. "I guess Hisoka found a place to sleep?"

"I'm not sure 'found' would be the correct word," Akane articulated. "We went to Porlyusica to check on Will, and he just dropped to the floor and was out like a light. We're not sure what was done with him. Speaking of that, you want to go see her?"

"Is that even a question?" Merlin began to walk, but froze as pain shot through his entire lower body. He ached all over, and had been thrown against several stone walls.

"Need a ride?" Akane offered. "You've taken quite a beating, and I have five months of experience carrying injured people."

"Sure." Merlin allowed Akane to pick him up and carry him down the hallway.

"So the injured are getting free rides now?" Emma joked. "Maybe I'll get extra hurt."

"If you purposefully injure yourself, I'll make you walk yourself," Akane replied.

"What if I lost an arm?" Nashi held up her right arm.

"You lost it three weeks ago, and you got a replacement. That hardly counts."

"Sheesh, you're so mean." Nashi looked away from him and pouted jokingly.

They continued along until they came to the hospital room where Porlyusica worked.

"Thomas, why didn't you come out to meet Merlin?" Akane asked as he set Merlin down on an empty bed.

"Sorry, I just thought I'd observe Porlyusica-sensei working for a bit."

Porlyusica sighed. "I'm not your 'sensei' at this moment. I told you to talk to me after the Games."

"Right, right," Thomas waved her off. "What about 'senpai', then?"

William jumped to her feet, changing the subject. "Well, who wants to go out for lunch?"

"I'm up for it," agreed Nashi. "I didn't even eat a proper breakfast after the Labyrinth."

"Can you grab something for me?" Merlin requested. "I'm not quite up for the idea of moving at the moment."

"Don't worry. We'll get you something," Emma reassured. "Now let's go."

"Thanks, Onei-chan."

* * *

Merlin sighed. "That feels so good."

"Don't get used to it," Hisoka warned. "I can't expend too much of my magic healing my teammates, or I won't have any left for fighting."

Merlin nodded. "Noted." He stood up as Hisoka finished up, and stretched. "It feels even better than healing naturally. I might learn some healing magic of my own."

"You can't learn mine, though. That's exclusive to river dragonslayers."

"Yeah, but maybe I could learn a trick or two from Thomas."

Hisoka yawned. "Right, well…" He stood up. "…ready to go join the others?"

They headed along the hallway and out into the stands, joining the rest of Dragon King and Fairy Tail.

"So what's the first match?" Merlin asked.

"I'm up against Eallesander," Emma replied as she stood up. "I'll be heading down there now." She made her way through the crowd and into the hallway. About a minute later, she appeared in the arena.

"Do your best, Emma!" William called as Eallesander appeared at another spot in the arena.

* * *

Emma and Eallesander walked to the center of the arena, then turned to face each other.

"The objective is to subdue your opponent," Chapati reminded. "However, there is a time limit of thirty minutes. If neither of you wins in that amount of time, it is considered a tie. Three, two, one, begin!"

"Tetsuryuukon!" An iron pillar shot straight towards Eallesander, who sidestepped it, then grabbed it from the side, melting part of it off. Emma retracted the pillar in surprise.

"My turn." Eallesander shot forward with supernatural speed, grabbing Emma by the arm, then spinning her around and flinging her at the wall.

"Incredible," one of the Hallowguard members commented. "I don't think they're using any sort of ability enhancement magic."

* * *

"And yet they're still way faster than me," Utkarsh marveled. "Incredible, isn't it, Burah?"

"Indeed," Burah agreed. "I'd almost say they weren't human."

"Right…" Utkarsh remembered what he had overheard back when they were rescuing the Dragon King wizards.

* * *

As Emma slammed into the wall, Eallesander dove in for another strike. This time, however, Emma reacted by moving in towards her attacker, and planting a foot in their side, using mostly their momentum to enhance the strike.

"Sorry, but I happen to have a lot of hand-to-hand combat experience with this one flame-brained idiot I know," Emma mused as Eallesander backed up, clutching their side. "Tetsuryuukon!" This time, the iron pillar found its mark, hitting Eallesander square in the stomach and sending them almost back to the center of the arena.

"I kinda like you," Eallesander wheezed. "You called my secret cool, and you're a nice challenge." They charged forward once more.

"Well, what are friends for?" Emma brought up her pillar as Eallesander flew above her.

"Are you sure you want to do that?" Ellesander grabbed the pillar in their hands, causing it to melt instantly as it hit, and spraying white-hot liquid iron all over the arena.

Emma grinned as the red-hot glow of the pillar slowly extended toward where it grew out of her arm. "Just getting a feel for your powers." She retracted the pillar and morphed it into a shield to avoid any fallen droplets. Then she turned it back into her hand, which turned out to have a few burns on it.

"You might want to have that looked at after this." Eallesander dove towards Emma, who pulled the same trick that Eallesander had at the start, grabbing their arm.

"Tetsuryuu no Houkou!" Emma unleashed her breath weapon at nearly point-blank range, not giving Eallesander a chance to dodge, and engulfing them in a thick torrent of iron filings. A red glow appeared in the center, which Emma assumed was Eallesander melting the filings that got near them. Then the glow moved backwards, and Emma's breath weapon subsided to reveal Eallesander flying backwards, their clothes pockmarked with burn holes, with burn marks on the exposed skin. "It seems there's a limit to what you can prevent from burning you. I would suggest you be careful with that."

"I suppose so," Eallesander agreed. "However…" they extended a hand toward Emma, and ice extended to the ground, expanding into a large wall and extending towards Emma, who was lucky enough to dodge. "…what if I were to freeze instead of melting?"

Emma took the opportunity of a free split second to shrug. "I mean, you can try it, I guess. Tetsuryuuken!" She produced an iron blade and slashed through the ice wall, but was surprised to see that ice had formed on the blade, reducing its ability to spin. "Sheesh, how cold is this stuff?!"

"It's frozen nitrogen," Eallesander explained, "which is the main gas in the atmosphere – even more abundant than oxygen. It's pretty cold when frozen."

"Clever!" Emma took another swing at the ice wall. This time, the blade shattered like glass. She retracted what was left back into her hand, and looked at it in disappointment. "It seems you shattered my blade, though."

"Try and get me now."

"Challenge accepted. Tetsuryuu no Uroko!" Scales formed all over Emma's body, and she charged at the ice wall, crashing through it and taking a swipe at Eallesander with clawed hands.

* * *

"This has gone on awhile," Hisoka commented.

"I would agree," replied William. "And neither one of them seems to have gained the upper hand."

"Well, I hope Emma wins," Merlin speculated. "I mean, I was able to beat dad. I'm sure Emma can beat this opponent."

* * *

Emma stumbled back, breathing heavily, and could see that Eallesander was doing the same. She grinned. "You truly are a tough opponent."

"I would say the same to you," Eallesander agreed.

"Aaaand time!"

The demon and the dragonslayer walked up to meet each other, then shook hands.

* * *

 **I would like to now explain something to you that is a bit divergent from the story. The character of Henri is based off of my real-life cat, Mixie. Three days before posting this chapter, Mixie, after showing spectacular health (ten years old and didn't look or act a day over four), suddenly was found to have a silent virus, and she died the following afternoon. I do not plan on killing off Henri in response to this. In fact, Mixie will continue live on in this character, and I'm even going to try to give Henri a larger part in the story than she currently has. Anyway, sorry for that tangent, and I hope you enjoyed the chapter.**


	28. GMG Arc - The Forgotten Companion

Emma and Eallesander shook hands.

"Good game," Emma beamed.

"Good game," Eallesander agreed.

The two sat down, then collapsed into a lying-down position. They looked at each other, then laughed at their nearly identical behavior.

Hisoka jogged out into the arena. "That was impressive. Both of you. Now who could use some healing magic?"

They both raised their hands.

Hisoka knelt between them, placed a hand on each of them, and then looked over at Eallesander. "Well, that explains it."

"What?" Eallesander asked.

"I didn't sense any ability enhancement magic," Hisoka explained. "In fact, strangely enough, I didn't sense any magic on you. Instead I sensed something else – some weird power that I've never sensed before. But this explains it."

"What does?"

"When I use my healing magic, I can sense my target's biological structure to some degree, and I can sense that you're not human."

Eallesander's eyes widened. Suddenly, they smacked Hisoka's hand away and scrambled to their feet, slowly backing away, then winced as pain shot through the side where Emma had landed her first blow.

"It's fine," Hisoka reassured. "Your secret's safe with me, if you're really that nervous about it. And you could still use a bit of healing."

Eallesander glanced uneasily at Emma, who nodded.

"It's okay. You can trust him."

Eallesander looked back at Hisoka, then sat back down and allowed Hisoka to reposition his hand on their side.

"You know, at first, I thought you used takeover magic, since that's a bit hard to detect. However, once I realized I couldn't sense any magic from you at all, even as you were carrying me and Nashi back in Edolas, I got confused. However, now that I know you're not human, my top theory is that you're an actual demon."

"You would be correct about that. And yeah, please don't tell anyone. Not everyone is that comfortable around me when they know what I am."

Hisoka nodded. "Yeah. After the Tartaros incident, that caused some concern. Galuna Island even had to re-isolate itself, because humans began to fear them once more. By the way, I've never seen you there, and from what I've heard, you're pretty new to Sabertooth. Where exactly are you from?"

"Now _that_ I won't even tell my guildmates," Eallesander replied. "Please don't pester me about it."

Hisoka nodded. "Sorry." He removed his hands from the two of them and stood up. "That should do it."

Emma and Eallesander stood up. Eallesander thanked Hisoka, then jogged off to where the rest of their guild was, while Hisoka and Emma headed back to rejoin their team.

"Oi, metal-head!" Nashi called. "If that's you going all-out, then I could easily take you down."

"What's that, flame-brain? You wanna test that out?"

They slammed their foreheads together. "I have a metal arm now, and if you even try to eat it, you'll face Elkhart's wrath," Nashi pointed out.

"You say that, having just seen me fight Eallesander," Emma asserted. "Are you sure you don't want to take that back?"

Hisoka sighed as they exchanged insults. "Aaaand you're fighting again." He looked at Merlin. "Why is it that, even when one of them becomes a bunch more powerful or is put at a disadvantage, neither one of them seems to gain the upper hand?"

Merlin shrugged. "They both did the S-class advancement trials last year, and they encountered each other. However, they somehow managed to just take each other out. Obviously, neither of them passed."

Hisoka watched as the two exchanged blow after blow. "Well, I guess it's how they train."

"Yeah. You know, at one point we thought maybe they actually liked each other, and we tried setting them up for a date." They began walking, leaving Nashi and Emma to catch up when they were finished.

Hisoka's eyes narrowed as he imagined how that would have gone. "Do go on."

"The short story: we were wrong. Long story short: they were fighting within a minute of arriving at their destination."

"I'm honestly surprised it took them that long, and that anyone ever thought they liked each other. It's possible to end up fighting as a result of having a crush on the person you're fighting, but extremely rare."

"Yeah. We figured that out pretty quickly."

"So, Nashi's attracted to girls, is she?"

"And guys," Merlin replied. "With her, gender doesn't even matter."

"I see."

"Why? Do you have a crush on her or something?"

"Um… not that I know of." Hisoka could feel his face heating up as Merlin said that. It was true. He wasn't aware of any feelings he might have for Nashi. Sure, he had been overly worried whenever she was in danger, but he would have done that with any close friend, and she was certainly a close friend, having been the person who introduced him to Fairy Tail, not to mention they had saved each other's lives a few times.

"Why are you blushing, then?"

"Because you were talking about me having a crush on someone, genius. That makes me nervous whether I actually have a crush on the person in question or not."

Merlin threw up his hands innocently. "Alright. Just checking. Anyway, let's go grab something to eat before the next match starts."

"Now that I can agree with."

* * *

"And the next battle will be: Fairy Tail A Team's Wendy Marvell versus Crime Sorcier's Erigor!" Chapati announced, earning cheers from the stands.

The two mages stepped out into the arena.

"I will advise that everyone in the stands hold onto their hats and lightweight possessions," Chapati warned, "for both contestants are extremely powerful wind mages. Three, two, one, begin!"

Instantly, both mages attacked, sending powerful gusts of wind at one another. They charged forward.

"Tenryuu no Youkugeki!" Wendy swung whip-like bands of wind at Erigor, sending him back several meters.

"Wind mail!" Erigor covered himself in wind, reminding William of one of the moves Elkhart had used on those dragons.

"Tenryuu no Boreasu!" Wendy produced rapidly splitting currents of wind at Erigor, blasting through his wind armor and sending him crashing into the wall. Suddenly, she stopped and looked down at her hands.

"What are you doing, Wendy?!" Erza called. "You were dominating him! Why did you stop?"

Erigor ran in for an attack, but faltered as he saw the look on Wendy's face. "Huh?" he skidded to a stop. "Tears?"

Wendy raised a hand to her eyes and wiped away the tears that were running down her cheeks. "Sorry, I… feel like I… learned that move from… someone important to me. And yet… I can't remember a thing about that person – only that they were important to me."

"Huh?"

"Also, why did you stop?"

Erigor scratched his head. "Well, your expression caught me off guard, considering you just sent me into a wall, and you were about to defeat me."

* * *

Hisoka's eyes widened. "A trace…"

"What do you mean 'a trace'?" Elkhart asked.

Hisoka looked over at Elkhart, and suddenly, the entire crowd fell silent. Hisoka and Elkhart both looked around Domus Flau to find that everyone in the crowd, as well as the contestants in the arena, were now completely unmoving.

Elkhart sighed. "Not this again."

"I assure you I am not controlling the timing of these," Ultear explained as she appeared next to them.

"Right. Well, anyway…" Elkhart once again made eye contact with Hisoka. "…what 'trace' are you talking about, exactly?"

Hisoka looked over at the time-frozen Wendy, then back at Elkhart. "When somebody uses Final Origin, their existence doesn't just disappear without a trace. They do leave things behind, namely what they did with that infinite magic that they released. Sometimes, however, they leave hints to their existence in somebody's memory – someone close to them. It's never enough to truly remember them, but sometimes, you get what Wendy's getting right now, where some emotions leak through, and even that move she just got worked up about." His eyes watered as he looked out at the arena, and a tear ran down his cheek. "I really, truly wish there were something we could do, especially if she was attached enough to have that much of a mark left on her."

Elkhart watched Hisoka's empathetic expression. "Oi, you shouldn't get that worked up over someone else's grief. Where's the room for caring about yourself?"

"I'm afraid this may be partially my fault," Ultear confessed. "Now, I don't remember this person either, even though I exist outside of time, but I do remember granting the ability to use Third Origin during Wendy and Charle's fight against Dimaria. However, in order to enable them to use magic once more, I also ended up unlocking that person's higher-level origins as well, since those are unaffected by Third Origin."

Hisoka shook his head. "It is by no means your fault. Even if the higher-level origins are involuntarily unlocked, using them is only ever done voluntarily. Whoever that person was, they made the sacrifice willingly."

"Right…" Suddenly, Ultear vanished, and the sounds of the crowd conversing with one another started back up.

* * *

"I feel like I should remember so much more than this, but there's nothing," Wendy continued.

Erigor crossed his arms, and sighed. "Well, emotions aside, I'm afraid we're still in the middle of a fight." He threw up a hand, sending a wall of wind extending toward Wendy with incredible speed.

Wendy stood there, taking the hit, but instead of being knocked back, inhaled Erigor's creation. "Don't forget, I'm a sky dragonslayer. Tenryuu no Tekken!" She shot towards Erigor, slamming a small but powerful fist engulfed in pressurized air into his stomach. "Tenryuu no Houkou!" Before Erigor could react, Wendy followed up with her breath weapon.

Erigor skidded along the ground, then lifted himself up with his own wind, looking quite beaten up.

"Tenryuu no Kenkaku!" Wendy flew up and slammed headfirst into Erigor, assisted by her wind, and sent him flying backwards, straight into Chapati and making some weird, distorted crashing sounds on the mic.

Chapati pushed Erigor off of him, and realized that the wind mage was unconscious. He got to his feet with a groan, dusted himself off, then set his chair and mic back in place and sat back down. "And the winner is: Wendy Marvell!" He reached down, picked his wig back up, and placed it back on his head.

* * *

"What was that about?" Natsu asked Wendy. "It's not actually that uncommon to not remember who taught you a move."

"I know," Wendy acknowledged. "But this is definitely someone I should remember. It's like I was really close to them."

"I may have an answer."

The team turned to see Hisoka jogging up to them.

"What do you mean?" asked Happy.

"I think I know who it is." Hisoka paused to contemplate what he had just said. "Well, not exactly. You see, the person you're trying to remember never actually existed."

"What?"

"Okay, so basically, the person you're trying to remember should have existed. The thing is, they never existed because they used Final Origin."

"Final Origin?"

"There are six levels of Origin," Hisoka explained. "Most people know about First and Second Origin. Wendy, do you remember what Third Origin is? It was used when you fought Dimaria."

Wendy thought for a moment. Then her eyes widened. "Yeah, it uses up your entire future potential, but… Charle and I can both still use magic…"

Hisoka nodded. "Because it was neither one of you who used Third Origin. It was that other person you're trying to remember."

"So why can't I remember them? And why are you saying they never existed?"

"Because that's what Final Origin does, it unleashes an unlimited amount of magic power, but in exchange, the user sacrifices their entire existence, past and future. However, they do leave traces, namely the magic they unleashed using Final Origin, but also hints of memories in those close to them."

Tears formed in Wendy's eyes.

"Yeah, you may not be able to remember them, but it still hurts, doesn't it? Even I feel really bad about it, even though I had nothing to do with it. A fate like that… nobody should have to deal with it, and nobody should subject their loved ones to it unless absolutely necessary."

Wendy sank to her knees, sobbing.

Hisoka knelt in front of her and placed a hand on her shoulder, allowing his passive calming magic to take effect. "I really am sorry." He knelt there for a few moments, and began gently singing. " _Ani couni chaouani, Ani couni chaouani._ "

Wendy's expression soften, and the tears lessened.

" _Awawa bikara ca_ _ї_ _na, Awawa bikara ca_ _ї_ _na. E aouni bissini, E aouni bissini._ " Hisoka finished his song and stood up. "It won't bring your friend back. There's nothing I can do."

"Thank you."

Hisoka responded to Wendy's gratitude with a half-smile. "Just don't tell anyone that I sing, alright? I like telling them myself."

"You have a beautiful singing voice, though," Lucy protested. "You should try performing at some point."

Hisoka could feel his face heating up in embarrassment. "I do perform… dances, not songs."

"I don't see the difference," Natsu argued, "especially with a voice like that."

Hisoka sighed. "To me, there's a difference. Now if you'll excuse me, I'll be on my way." He turned and headed back the way he had come.

* * *

"For the third battle: Fairy Tail B Team's Romeo Conbolt versus Lamia Scale's Lyon Vastia!"

The contestants stepped out onto the battlefield.

"Begin!"

"Icemake: Eagle!" Lyon placed a fist on his open hand, causing ice to spurt from it and form the shape of the giant bird, which proceeded to fly straight towards Romeo.

"That's a cool bird." Romeo threw up a hand, producing a barrage of flames which melted Lyon's eagle.

"I honestly should have known you'd do that. Icemake: Prison!" Lyon charged at Romeo, then leaped up and extended both hands toward Romeo, then formed an icy cage.

"You're trying the same thing and expecting different results." Romeo once again heated up the cage, this time generating a thick fog.

"Nope! You fell for it! Certainly, with water ice, melting it would be no problem, but this is dry ice, which creates a thick fog when melted. Icemake: Snow Tiger!"

"Oh?" Romeo smacked the tiger with an iron fist, shattering it. "In that case…" He created a large omnidirectional burst of flames, this time blue. "I'm sorry to inform you that I have cold flames." The fog cleared as the atmosphere it was in cooled to the same temperature. "Oh, and…" Suddenly, his flames turned white as they heated to an incredible temperature.

"Icemake…" Lyon broke off as he realized that his ice was melting just as quickly as it was forming. "Icemake: Heatshield!" He channeled the energy throughout his body, slowing down the rate at which he heated up from Romeo's flames.

"Sorry, you just seemed a bit cold in those boxers." Romeo continued to increase the temperature of his flames, eventually causing Lyon to pass out from the intense heat. "Are you sure you should be fighting like that?"

"And the winner is: Romeo Conbolt!"

* * *

"For the fourth and final battle of the day: Sabertooth A Team's Dobengal versus Hallowguard's Utkarsh Alpine!"

Dobengal came out in his usual ninja-like outfit, while Utkarsh wore casual clothing and a pair of goggles.

"Just out of curiosity, why do you wear those goggles?"

"My glasses tend to fall off when I'm doing something like fighting," Utkarsh replied as he moved into a fighting stance. "Shall we?"

"Begin!" Chapati shouted on the mic.

A rainbow whip extended from Dobengal's arm and slashed at Utkarsh, who leaped above its motion path. Then Dobengal swung the whip upward and brought it straight down, sending up a torrent of rubble. Once again, Utkarsh jumped out of the way.

"Nice!" Utkarsh mused. "I'm quite fortunate that didn't hit me." He closed in on Dobengal, who in turn dispelled his magic and charged. Dobengal swung an invisibly fast fist, but Utkarsh dodged it like it was no big deal, and aimed a kick back at Dobengal.

"You're fast," Dobengal observed. "And yet, I don't sense any magic on you."

"It's because I can't use magic," Utkarsh explained. "I've never been able to use magic, so I have instead physically trained to work on the same level as mages."

"Interesting." Dobengal then threw several projectiles to the ground, which then exploded into various colored clouds of smoke. "But what if you can't see me?" He ran around and then took another strike at Utkarsh, but was met by a hand grabbing his fist.

"My reaction time and dexterity aren't the only things I've improved. My ears… my nose as well, and my physical strength." He tightened his grip.

Dobengal screamed as he felt the bones in his hand breaking. Then he pulled back and planted a foot in Utkarsh's stomach. Utkarsh doubled over in pain, letting go of Dobengal's fist, then grabbed Dobengal's leg as he went in for another kick, standing up, swinging around and tossing Dobengal into the air.

"Clever," Utkarsh complimented. "I thought you were trying to pull your hand away, but you were instead pulling me closer so you could land a kick."

Dobengal skidded along the ground and regained his footing. "And it's impressive that you recovered so quickly."

Utkarsh grinned. "This should be interesting."

* * *

"A non-wizard in a wizard guild?" Chapati speculated. "Is that even legal?"

"Technically, yes," Yajima replied. "As strange as it is, in all my years on the Magic Council, the ability to use magic has never been stated as a prerequisite for joining a wizard guild."

"Interesting," Chapati mused. "Well, Utkarsh seems to be putting up quite the fight. And the fans seem to like him, based on the cheers that I'm hearing."

"He is indeed an incredible man," Yajima agreed.

* * *

Dobengal shot round after round of energy blades at Utkarsh, while Utkarsh dodged all of them. Utkarsh then proceeded to slide between Dobengal's legs, coming up behind him and going for a strike to the back of the neck, which was also dodged. Both had managed to take a couple of hits throughout the fight, though Dobengal was breathing heavily, clearly more worn-out than his opponent

Nashi looked over at Hisoka. "You appear to be extremely interested in this fight."

Hisoka nodded, without taking his eyes off the arena. "I happen to also be fairly agile, but I'm not as good with agility-based fighting moves, so I'm going to see if I can pick up on the sorts of attacks they're doing."

Nashi sighed. "You don't have to spend all of your free time learning fighting techniques."

"You know, you're the last person I expected to say that."

"What, because I'm fighting with Emma all the time? Even I sometimes just settle down and do some light activity. Besides, with you it's unnatural, like you're trying too hard. Why do you do it?"

Hisoka's intent expression wavered, and he turned to Nashi. He looked her in the eye for a few seconds, then looked down, taking her right hand in both of his and holding it up for her to see. "This is why. I don't want you or any of my other friends to get hurt like that."

Nashi's eyes narrowed in exasperation. "For the most part, I can take care of myself. Also, now that I'm getting used to this new arm, I'd rather keep the changes than go back."

"But there are drawbacks, like you can't feel properly."

"I can't feel pain, or temperature, but I can feel touch and pressure. And while I can't feel actual temperature…" she placed her metal hand over Hisoka's left hand, then gripped it gently. "…this still feels warm… in a way… sort of."

Hisoka smiled. Then his pained expression returned. "Perhaps you are comfortable with your new arm, but that doesn't change the fact that I couldn't even get one of my guildmates home in one piece. How am I supposed to protect my home?"

"Your home…" Nashi thought for a moment. "Does this have something to do with Soren?"

"More or less. I'm not going to say much. However, I will say that there are many dragons on my home continent, and for one reason or another, they've decided to take over the world. If we're not ready for it, the kingdoms of Ishgar will fall."

Nashi's eyes widened. "What are you…?"

Hisoka turned back to the fight. "That's why I need to get better at fighting. I have to be able to protect my family. If I can get strong enough and get back to my home continent in time, I could prevent them from even getting started." A tear ran down his left cheek. "I'm going to do tomorrow's contest. I don't care what it is. Just bring it on."

"If it involves the ground moving, you're screwed."

"That goes for you, too, as well as our entire team."

Nashi nodded. "Fair enough." She watched as Hisoka wiped his eyes. "Well, even if you're not going to tell me anything, this is really important to you, isn't it?"

"Yeah. Just don't keep asking me questions. I'll tell you what I'm ready to tell you, and that's it."

* * *

Dobengal once again aimed a kick at Utkarsh's face. This time, Utkarsh made no attempt to dodge, instead catching the leg in his hand. "I learned this from you, my opponent." He yanked on Dobengal's leg, tripping the other one and sending him falling face-first to the ground. Before he hit the ground, Utkarsh landed a blow on the back of his neck, catching the brain stem and paralyzing Dobengal.

"And the winner is: Utkarsh Alpine!"

Utkarsh knelt and turned Dobengal over, then helped him sit up. "That was a fun fight."

"I-I s-suppose s-so…" The Sabertooth wizard was still having trouble breathing due to the paralysis.

Hisoka jumped off the stadium wall and glided over to the two. "I suppose this guy is going to need some healing?"

"I mean, I kind of broke his hand," Utkarsh pointed out, "so yeah, I guess."

Hisoka took Dobengal's hand, and water condensed around it. "Now, I can regenerate bone marrow, but not actual bone. So, until you find someone who can, don't use this hand." He then moved to the back of the neck, reviving the brain stem. Almost immediately, Dobengal was able to move normally. He stood up, then extended his uninjured hand to Utkarsh. "Good game."

Utkarsh grinned, took Dobengal's hand and shook it. "Good game."

"That was an interesting fight," Hisoka agreed. He then sprouted his wings. "And a good first day. Now, I'll be joining my friends." He flew back up to the stadium.

* * *

 **So, what did you think? I will say that song Hisoka was singing was a real-life Iroquois song. As for that friend Wendy lost, well… I'm not saying who it is, regardless of how obvious it might be, but I will tell you it's one of Mashima's characters. But all that aside, hope you enjoyed!**


	29. GMG Arc - A Name is Earned

"Welcome to the second day of the Grand Magic Games! I'm your emcee, Chapati Rola, joined by Yajima-san, owner of 8-Island café, as well as today's guest speaker: Warrod Seekin!"

"Thank you, Rola-san," Warrod replied.

"Now for the rankings so far: in eighth place, we have Lamia Scale with zero points. In seventh place: Crime Sorcier with one point. In sixth place, with ten points, we have Sabertooth A Team. In fifth place, with eleven points: Dragon King. In fourth place, with twelve points: Fairy Tail B Team. Tied in second place, with thirteen points each, we have Hallowguard and Sabertooth B Team. And in first place, with fourteen points: Fairy Tail A Team!"

* * *

"Akane!" Torden greeted. "Nice of you to join me up here!"

Akane shrugged. "You seemed kind of lonely up on this statue. And you're a Fairy Tail member now, so alone is the last thing you should be."

"Well, that is part of what is nice about being in a guild," Torden replied. He looked out at the arena. "So Hisoka decided to be in today's competition, did he?"

Akane nodded. "Personally, I'm quite curious."

* * *

"Today's contest is called… Unstable!"

Hisoka almost immediately stepped out into the arena.

"And we already have a contestant. From Dragon King: Hisoka Dreyar!"

A few people cheered – a bit more than yesterday, but still not very many.

"From Hallowguard: Tolla Osimer!"

This time, the cheering was much louder. _Of course,_ Hisoka thought to himself. _Utkarsh was quite impressive yesterday, fighting one of Sabertooth's strongest wizards with no magic. Hallowguard would be popular at this point._ He watched as someone from Sabertooth whom he didn't recognize entered the arena.

"From Sabertooth B Team, Jonah Fiore!"

"Fiore?!" Hisoka went over to the kid. She had short, jade-green hair and eyes. "Does that mean you're the queen's daughter?"

Jonah shot a dirty look at Hisoka. " _Son,_ " he corrected.

"But you smell female…"

"And that's why I don't like dragonslayers," Jonah complained. "I don't care if I smell like a girl. I'm not a girl. Think about the name. Does that sound like a girl's name to you?"

"Uh… I hadn't really thought about it, I guess, but we have a girl in our guild named William, so…"

Jonah sighed. "Okay, fine. You've met girls with guy's names and I smell female. However, I don't identify by the way I smell, and you shouldn't identify me like that either."

"So… you're trans, then?"

"And?!"

"Sorry, I didn't mean to offend you. I just haven't met a lot of you guys, so…"

Jonah put up a hand to stop him. "Apology accepted. That doesn't mean I like you, though."

Hisoka shrugged. "I can work with that."

"From Sabertooth A Team, Minerva Orlando!"

"Just out of curiosity, though," Hisoka continued as Minerva entered the battlefield. "What's royalty doing in a wizard guild?"

Jonah shrugged. "I felt like it, and my mom agreed that it could be an enriching experience, so… here I am."

"From Lamia Scale: Marlo Akatsuki! From Fairy Tail B Team: Mirajane Strauss!"

Hisoka's eyes widened. "This is gonna be tough."

"From Crime Sorcier: Macbeth! From Fairy Tail A Team: Gray Fullbuster!"

"I rest my case," Hisoka concluded.

Suddenly, the ground beneath them jolted, and the entire arena rose away from the stadium – a disc-shaped patch of ground, Hisoka dropped to his knees, trying to get ahold of himself on the moving object. He began to feel nauseous as the arena rose faster and faster.

Finally, the arena slowed to a stop, and Hisoka took a few moments to collect himself. He ran over to the edge to see that they were about a kilometer above the ground. He began walking back towards the center, when suddenly, embedded in the ground, seven lacrima crystals appeared, forming a ring of six about halfway from the center, with the seventh one _at_ the center.

"The goal: knock each of your opponents off the edge for more than ten seconds. That means that if you have flying magic and can't get back into the arena's space quickly enough, you are eliminated. Also, for every lacrima you break, the arena becomes less stable. Break all seven, and it's floating freely, with only your weight to balance it. Begin!"

Mirajane went straight for Hisoka, grappling him around the stomach.

"Oi, why are you going after me first?!"

"You're closer to the edge, and therefore easier to knock off," Mirajane replied.

"I… also… have… wings!" He sprouted his wings and pushed back towards the center.

"Me, too!" Mirajane sprouted her own demonic wings, as well as a tail, as she activated her Satan Soul. The two pushed against one another.

"Pick… somebody… else… Kawatatsu no… Kagizume!" A water-propelled foot slammed into Mirajane's stomach, flipping her over Hisoka and causing her to lose her grip. "Pick somebody else!" He flew over to Macbeth, who seemed to have the strange compulsion to just stand there.

"You want to fight me?" inquired Macbeth.

"Kawatatsu no Houkou!" Hisoka unleashed his breath weapon at Macbeth, but all on its own, the magic swerved around the target, hitting Marlo by accident. "Crap… I forgot."

Macbeth turned as Marlo went flying off the arena, then turned back to Hisoka. "Magic can't hit me, remember?"

Hisoka charged Macbeth, landing an open-palm strike squarely in the middle of Macbeth's chest and knocking him to the ground. "People, on the other hand…"

"Careful, there…" Macbeth held up his hands, and a greenish energy started forming.

"Oh, no you don't! Kawatatsu no Tekken!" He swung at Macbeth, expecting that his hand would be unaffected. However, Macbeth simply bent the water, which took the hand with it. "I misjudged…"

Suddenly, Mirajane came in from behind and slammed into Macbeth, sending him over the edge.

"I hope they're safe," Hisoka speculated. "It's a rather long way to the ground."

"They probably use the same magic as in the Labyrinth," Mirajane replied.

Suddenly, Hisoka sensed distortions in space. He leaped out of the way, while an explosion sent Mirajane out of the arena.

"Crap…" Mira started to fly back in, but was met by another explosion that sent her further away. Hisoka turned to see Minerva looking at Mira.

"I win this one, Mirajane."

Hisoka took this opportunity to sneak out of sight, aware that he wouldn't be able to take Minerva head-on. He snuck around behind Minerva, making sure he couldn't even hear his footsteps over the sound of his own brainwaves. He inhaled, magic welling up in his stomach, then blasted Minerva from behind with his breath weapon, knocking her straight into the Fairy Tail mage she was trying to take out and sending them both tumbling. "Lucky," he commented to himself. Suddenly, he was struck from behind by something cold. He tried flying, but huge ice crystals had already formed where his wings should have been able to materialize.

"That was clever," Gray praised. "However, you must always be ready for your opponents to pull the same trick on you."

"You should know…" Hisoka grunted. "I can work… with water… in any state…" He arched his back, shattering the ice crystals, then picked one up and ate it. "Thanks for the meal."

"Icemake: Lance!" Gray shot several icy skewers at Hisoka. He dodged most of them, but the last one formed a gash in his side on the way past. He dropped to his knees, clutching the wound. "Not mine, you can't."

Just then, a white streak of energy shot to the ground, then dissipated, revealing Jonah. "I wonder if any of you have a good sense of balance like me," he wondered.

Hisoka, Gray and Tolla looked up to see a constellation of magic circles in the sky, forming the shape of the Big Dipper. "That's Elkhart's…"

"Grand Chariot!" Jonah pointed one hand at the ground and one at the sky. The constellation started glowing, and a barrage of meteorites rained down on the arena.

"What are you…?" Hisoka was cut off as a jolt overtook the arena. He looked over at the crystals to see that they were shattering one by one. "Stop! I can't… hoolp!" He doubled over and threw up as the arena shook, only three crystals remaining. Then one shattered, and the ground began to tilt. "Gaaaahhh!" Hisoka screamed as he struggled to muster up a tiny bit of power. He formed small water drills on his fingertips, drilling some small holes and then inserting his fingertips. He did the same with his boot tips. "I won't go down… that easily… gaaahh!" The last two lacrima shattered, and the ground tilted to a full ninety degrees. Hisoka fell further and grabbed the edge, holding on as if his life depended on it, while the arena floated freely, able to bounce up and down from any changes in weight. "Dammit… if I fall… in this state… I won't… be able… to form my wings… quickly enough…!" He let out another determined scream as he tightened his grip on the holes he had made.

"Incredible," Gray observed from where he had frozen himself to the ground. "I've never seen that sort of determination with the Grand Magic Games in twenty-one years."

"I… have… to be able… to take it…!" Hisoka strained. "I will take… anything… that you can throw… at me… huaaaagghhh!"

* * *

"Hisoka…" Merlin watched the LacrimaVision with concern. "How can you be so determined? It's just a game."

"I think for him, it's more than that," Henri explained. "I have an idea of it, but I honestly don't understand the full picture."

"It's like when I went after my parents," Nashi speculated. "That's the determination I see in him." She thought about what Hisoka had said yesterday, taking a casual glance down at her right arm. "I think he may be able to do this, if his emotions are reflected in his magic."

* * *

"What do you make of it?" Torden inquired.

"I'm honestly not sure," Akane admitted. "I mean, I've only ever seen him that determined once, when his sister went missing."

"He has a sister?"

"Last I knew," Akane replied. "Certainly the last time he visited. They're not technically related, but they treated each other like they are. I mean, from what I heard, Flumentia took him to Ishgar, but then stayed back on the Far West Continent with his sister."

"What was her name?"

"Avonaco, I believe."

"Avonaco… Avonaco…"

"Have you met her?"

"It's hard to say," Torden replied. "They don't do last names over there, so some people tend to have the same name. I met one young girl with that name… in the land of the Blue Grass, about two years ago, and another time seven years ago. She disappeared, back then, after Flumentia was executed. The most recent encounter was by accident, and she quickly got away."

"She would have been about eight that first time, and thirteen during the second encounter," Akane notified.

"That sounds right," Torden confirmed.

"That's definitely her. How is she?"

"Well, she doesn't like what's been going on recently, but she's not in any immediate danger."

Akane smiled. "That's good to know. Maybe I can cheer up Hisoka about what he heard from Soren." He looked back at the LacrimaVision, where Hisoka was still fighting to stay in the arena.

"And Tolla knocks Gray out of his ice boots!" Chapati announced. "Now the only contestants left are Tolla, Jonah and Hisoka."

"I… won't give in… dammit!" Hisoka's vision began to blur. The wound in his side had managed to close, but he had lost a lot of blood, and it still wasn't healed, and hurt like hell. "Focus… dammit!"

The arena tilted once more. Jonah ran towards the higher end, grabbing the edge and hanging on as the arena turned upside-down. Tolla used her wind magic to stick to the floor.

"Have… to muster… power! Haaaaauuuggh!" He tried focusing enough magic for his breath weapon, but his stomach was too upset by the constant tossing and turning of the arena.

"Motion," Jonah noted. "A dragonslayer's fatal weakness. Well, it won't kill you on its own, but it leaves you vulnerable to anything your opponent could possibly do."

"Come… over… here… and see… just how… vulnerable… gaaaaahhhh!" He felt his fingerholds cracking, and dug in deeper. "I just… need… some… power…" His muscles began to burn from the effort.

Jonah watched Hisoka's pathetic condition, and saw that Tolla was also standing and watching. He sighed and pulled himself up onto a certain point on the arena, being careful to maintain balance with the weight of the other two contestants. "This is more than just a game to you, isn't it?"

Hisoka looked up at both of them, sweat, frustration and determination all over his face.

"I'm also curious," Tolla chimed in. "Nobody treats something as just a game and behaves like that. Anyone else in your condition would have fallen a long time ago."

"And I'm not anyone else!" Hisoka snapped, finally able to get a full sentence out. "Damn right this is important to me. The more you exploit my weaknesses, the more important it becomes that I overcome them…" He took a moment to catch his breath, then continued. "I have to get stronger, to protect my family, and my guild." He continued to dig his fingers deeper into the ground as he spoke. "One day… I will face… an enemy… more powerful… than you can ever imagine! I don't know whether this enemy is a single person, or a continent of dragons, I have to get stronger! Every failure I make… it's that much longer… that I am powerless… against that threat. I won't accept defeat… game or not!" He looked Jonah directly in the eye. "So don't just stand there and go easy on me, no matter how pathetic I look to you! Bring it all on!"

* * *

Team Dragon King watched from the stadium.

"I'm proud of you, Hisoka," Merlin praised. "That's what you taught me. To keep fighting."

Nashi just smiled at the screen, then raised her right thumb and forefinger high in the air, in the shape of a backwards L.

Emma sighed, then joined in, followed by Merlin, William and Henri. Thomas realized what was going on and followed suit, followed by all of Fairy Tail.

Gray and Mirajane sat on their magic circles, watching the fight above, and made the same hand sign as the rest of the guild.

* * *

Akane raised his thumb and forefinger, smiling at the LacrimaVision.

"What is that sign?" Torden asked.

"A gesture we like to do in Fairy Tail when reaching out to our friends," Akane explained. "It means that even if we're not there, or if we can't see you, we're always with you, always watching. You've been in the guild for barely over a week, so I'm not surprised you don't know about it."

"Well, now I do." Torden grinned and raised one of his clawed hands, making the same gesture as everyone else.

Akane smiled up at Torden, then turned back to the screens. "Welcome to Fairy Tail, Torden."

* * *

Hisoka slowly stood up, now that the weight of Jonah and Tolla were keeping the arena upright. He sprouted his wings. "I can't fly, but I can hold my ground. Huaaaaaggghh!" He shakily put one foot forward in the direction of Tolla.

"You know, I could blow you off with just one swipe," Tolla pointed out.

"Then do it!" Hisoka demanded. With all the strength he could muster, he forced the magic to condense in his stomach. "Kawatatsu no… Houkou!" He unleashed his breath weapon at Tolla, catching her off guard and sending her flying towards the edge. She skidded to a halt, and the arena suddenly tilted upward on Hisoka's side.

"Sometimes you should train more lightly rather than injure yourself," Jonah advised, grabbing the edge and hanging, while Hisoka flattened himself against the floor with the assistance of his wings.

"Look me in the eye and tell me whether you think I give a crap!" Hisoka asserted as he looked down at Jonah. "It's motion sickness. I can recover. In fact, I can come back stronger than before! I once spent two weeks on a ship. Kawatatsu no Houkou!" He forced more magic into his stomach and sent another torrent at Tolla, this time knocking her off. "You see that…? I just… defeated someone… while motion sick… gaaaahhh!" He stumbled over to a point opposite from where Jonah was, his head spinning.

"I saw that, and you're right. I shouldn't go easy on you." As the arena began to tilt back to normal, Jonah heaved himself up and ran towards the center, grabbing onto one of the shattered lacrima crystals.

Suddenly, Hisoka's weight was throwing the arena off balance. The ground tilted beneath him. "I will keep going… even when the entire deck is stacked against me. Because even when I'm not in the same official guild, I am a Fairy Tail wizard!" He slipped and swiped at the edge, but couldn't find purchase, and finally fell to join the others below. "Yeah…" he wavered as the magic circle caught him. "I lost… however… I tried my hardest, and I will continue to get stronger until it's enough…" He closed his eyes and felt his consciousness slip away, smiling as he heard the audience cheering.

The arena lowered itself to the ground, setting everyone down in a ring. Everyone in Dragon King ran out to check on Hisoka, who had finally passed out from the motion sickness and blood loss.

"Oh, my!" Chapati commented. "An unexpected performance from Dragon King's Hisoka Dreyar! Even through severe motion sickness, he pressed on, earning second place in the competition! And with that touching speech as well!"

Almost everyone in the stadium cheered in response to Chapati's commentary. "Hi-so-ka! Hi-so-ka! Hi-so-ka!"

"It is a splendid sight watching youngsters so determined," Warrod added. "I am proud to have been in the same guild as that boy."

Nashi looked up at the cheering crowd, then knelt next to Hisoka and took a look at him. There was still a bloodstain from when he had taken that spear to the side. She looked up at Thomas. "He'll be okay, right?"

Thomas drifted to the ground and examined the wound, then his heartbeat. "He'll be fine, though it would be a good idea to take him to Porlyusica."

Nashi smiled as she lifted Hisoka and carried him towards the exit. "Honestly, he's a bit reckless."

"And you're a bit hypocritical," Thomas retorted.

"And what do you mean by that?!" snapped Nashi.

"He means that Hisoka didn't try to go on the five hundred-year quest alone," Emma sneered.

Nashi sighed. "I would beat you to a pulp if I weren't busy carrying an unconscious person."

Emma chuckled to herself. "You've tried so many times and failed."

"Well, same to you, metal-head!"

Just as they were entering the hallway, Akane glided down to meet them. "How is he?"

"Not dying," Thomas replied. "We're still taking him to Porlyusica, though."

* * *

Porlyusica put a hand over her face out of disappointment. "He's just like his uncle, pushing through everything and not even taking care of his own body."

Nashi nodded. "Okay, well, um…"

"He'll be fine," Porlyusica reassured.

Nashi nodded. "I've seen him survive worse. That wasn't a worry for me."

* * *

"The first battle of the second day: Lamia Scale's Wally Buchanan versus Crime Sorcier's Meredy!"

"Woohoo!" Milliana cheered.

"You seem awfully cheerful for someone who didn't make it through the Labyrinth," Kagura mused.

"Well, my friends are in the Games, so the least I can do is cheer them on."

Kagura smiled, then leaned over and kissed Milliana on the cheek. "That's what makes you so nice to be around."

"Mm," Milliana responded to Kagura's affectionate gesture by leaning against the woman. "Well, I'm glad I was able to bring some light to your heart, though I was startled the first time I ever saw you smile out of joy."

Kagura watched as Meredy and Wally started fighting. "So what do you think of the new Fairy Tail mages?"

"I think that Dragon King guild is pretty cool," Milliana replied. "Especially Hisoka, with that speech he gave this morning."

"Yeah, it was pretty moving. It reminds me of that speech Natsu gave in his first contest."

"Oh, yeah," Milliana pondered. "It was kinda similar."

"And the winner is: Meredy!"

Milliana suddenly turned her attention back to the arena to see Wally lying on the ground. "Aww, come on! I wanted to see my friend win. And how did he go down so quickly?"

"Well, Crime Sorcier is made up of some powerful former criminals."

"But Wally-kun is powerful, too. Hmph!" She crossed her arms, and the cat ears in her hair flattened in annoyance.

"Hey, don't be like that." Kagura reached over and scratched her behind the cat ears, earning a few purrs. "He'll get his win. Just you wait."

Milliana smiled and snuggled up against Kagura.

* * *

Henri flew over to William. "Okay, I've told the referee."

"Alright!" William did a fist pump.

"Why are you so excited to be fighting? It's not going to be fun, you know."

"Wanna bet on that?" dared William. "I may be crippled, but I've practiced working around it, and I'm itching for a fight. Plus, ever since Merlin and I ate all those new metals, I've been itching to use them."

"Just be careful," Henri warned.

William nodded. "I will."

* * *

 **Yeah, I thought it might be cool if Hisoka gave a speech similar to the one Natsu gave. Maybe it would have been a better fit for Nashi, as a parallel to Natsu, but having Hisoka do it was more significant to the storyline I currently have in mind. Anyway, hope you enjoyed!**


	30. GMG Arc - Not Just a Game

Porlyusica walked into the room to see Hisoka continuing to sleep in his bed, then smiled as she saw Nashi, who had been sitting on the floor next to him, but was now flopped over on top of him, also fast asleep.

Then Nashi slowly opened one eye. Suddenly, her eyes turned extremely wide as she realized where she had fallen asleep. She jumped to her feet, somehow neither losing her balance nor waking Hisoka.

"The next match will be starting soon," Porlyusica notified.

Nashi nodded and left the room, refusing to look Porlyusica in the eye.

Porlyusica sighed and muttered to herself as she got back to work. "It's not like I'm going to tell anyone. I could care less about that sort of thing."

* * *

"The second battle of the day: Fairy Tail A Team's Gildarts Clive versus Fairy Tail B Team's Elkhart Scarlet-Fernandes!"

A thunderous cheer rose from the crowd as the two Fairy Tail mages stepped onto the battlefield.

"I hear those are Fairy Tail's two most powerful mages!"

"Didn't you hear? A dragon joined their guild recently."

"Who cares? I heard that Elkhart took down thirty dragons."

"No, it was only twenty."

"I heard it was over fifty!"

Elkhart sighed as he overheard snippets of what the crowd was saying.

"Sounds like you're pretty popular," Gildarts mused.

"It was three dragons," Elkhart corrected, though the crowd couldn't hear him. "How did three turn into fifty?"

Gildarts shrugged. "Give somebody an interesting story, and they'll exaggerate it to no end. Just wait. In a few centuries, you'll be known as the warrior who singlehandedly took down hundreds of dragons."

"Good thing I won't be alive by then. Shall we begin?"

Gildarts nodded, and the two stood there.

"Aaand begin!" Chapati signaled.

The two continued to stand perfectly still, staring each other down.

* * *

"Um… what's going on here?" Chapati wondered. "Neither of them have made a move so far."

"Both Elkhart and Gildarts are intelligent, incredibly powerful mages," Warrod explained. "Each one is taking their time to search for any weak points. They are also both aware that making the first move will put them at a severe disadvantage."

"Will it now?"

"Indeed. Both are fairly proficient in reacting quickly to oncoming attacks, and they know it."

* * *

"How about this?" Elkhart pulled out a coin. "Heads, I have to make the first move, and tails, you have to."

Gildarts shrugged. "Seems fair enough. It's been ten minutes already, and I'd rather there be a conclusion to this."

Elkhart flipped the coin, which sailed through the air and hit the ground with a tiny thump. Elkhart then bent down to look at the coin, stood up and looked back at Gildarts.

"Heads."

Gildarts nodded and waited.

Elkhart threw up his hands toward Gildarts, sending a drill of air directly at the old man. Gildarts reacted by unleashing a disassembly spell, which turned the wind drill into small bits of pressurized air that almost instantly dispersed.

"Meteor!" Elkhart activated his spell, and shot into the air, zipping around almost too quickly for Gildarts to see. Gildarts sent wave after wave of disassembly magic, but missed with every single one. Elkhart shot up into the air.

"I know what you're doing," Gildarts muttered, though he knew Elkhart couldn't hear him.

Elkhart saw a disassembly spell shooting up towards the magic circles he was drawing in the air. He sent a fireball down at the spell so that it hit that instead, breaking up the fireball into small wisps of flame which quickly dispelled. He finished drawing the magic circles, then shot back to the ground.

"Prepare to be judged by the stars." Elkhart extended one arm downward and the other upward, striking a similar pose to what Jonah had done earlier. "Grand Chariot!" Magic circles started glowing, and hundreds of tiny meteorites shot down at Gildarts, who somehow reacted quickly enough to throw up a shield, dispelling every single one of the meteorites.

"Impressive," Gildarts praised. "Just what I expected to see from the son of Erza Scarlet and Jellal Fernandes." He launched an omnidirectional wave of disassembly magic.

Elkhart reacted quickly, requipping a staff with a small red lacrima on the end. He extended it towards the wave, generating a sphere from the lacrima that seemed to distort time itself, showing everything behind it slowing down, redshifting and turning black. The disassembly wave traveled past Elkhart, the part that would have hit him stretching back to the sphere of slowed light. "Those elemental blades aren't the only magical focus I've invented. I also have this extendable focus. It's actually pretty convenient, since the origin of my slowed light spheres can normally only come from my body." He leaped through the gap that had been created by the stretching of Gildarts' magic, then requipped a large, extremely reflective shield, throwing it out and causing it to embed itself in the ground. He then dispelled the sphere.

Suddenly, as the shield shattered, Gildarts stumbled back and covered his eyes. "What were those flashes of light just now?"

"Cosmic radiation," Elkhart explained. "When you bunch up light in an area that slows down, you get a shorter wavelength, meaning higher energy, such as cosmic radiation instead of visible light, and while cosmic radiation won't get through the air effectively enough to cause any harm, it can hit your optic nerve and cause flashes like that." He ran toward Gildarts, his hand charging with lightning. "And now…"

Gildarts grabbed Elkhart's arm. "So I just have to get close enough to you? Good to know."

Elkhart's eyes widened as he realized the mistake he had made, then burst to pieces as Gildarts' magic took effect.

* * *

"Elkhart!" Erza shouted in fear.

"Don't worry," Natsu reassured. "He's used this spell on me before. Look."

Erza looked, and sure enough, scattered all over the ground were miniature versions of Elkhart.

"I wonder…" one of the miniatures tried requipping, and sure enough, ended up with a tiny elemental blade to go with him.

"Nice!" A bunch of the other miniatures tried the same thing, and ended up with their own tiny elemental blades.

"Meteor!" Suddenly, every single one of them shot into the air, streaking towards Gildarts.

"Nope. I made that mistake before, and now I'm ready." Before any of them could reach him, Gildarts threw up a hand and undid the spell, sending all the mini-Elkharts flying to a single point, at which point Elkhart returned to his original form.

"What was the point in that?" Elkhart wondered.

"Just getting you off of me before you could shock me," Gildarts replied.

Elkhart grinned. "Clever." He launched a fireball at Gildarts, who disassembled it, but was then met with a pair of wind lances.

"A smokescreen…" Gildarts commented as he dodged one and blocked the other with his prosthetic arm. "Or, I guess that would be a firescreen."

"Ha ha," Elkhart sarcastically laughed. "And what if I just destroy stuff instead of shooting my magic at you? Meteor!" He shot up into the air, then came back down. "Redshift!" He turned blue from Gildarts' point of view, then slammed into the ground with far greater momentum than his velocity suggested, generating a shockwave and a cloud of high-speed debris that knocked Gildarts to the ground.

* * *

"Incredible," Emma marveled. "I've never seen anyone knock Gildarts out of a standing position."

"It is incredibly hard to do," Levy agreed as she looked down at her daughter. Her eyes widened as she realized that she could only see Emma's lower legs on the wall. She leaned over and saw that she was hanging upside-down above the lower levels of the stadium. "Get down from there!"

"I'd rather not," Emma protested. "It's a rather long way to the ground."

"I meant get off! Climb back up here this instant!"

"No."

"I'm your mom!" Levy snapped. "And I'm worried that you'll fall."

"I'm eighteen," Emma retorted, "and I will sit where I feel comfortable."

"Do what your mom says," Gajeel ordered.

"No."

Gajeel's eyes widened. "Okay, considering you usually either listen to me or explain why you're not doing something, that was a bit disconcerting."

"Too bad," Emma replied. "I'm comfortable here, and none of my senses are suggesting that I'm about to fall."

Gajeel sighed in annoyance.

"Just leave it, Gajeel," Levy advised. "We tried. She won't listen."

"Would you be quiet?" Nashi demanded. "I'm trying to watch the match."

Lucy jumped with surprise, then saw Nashi's lower legs, and leaned over to see that Nashi was doing the exact same thing a bit to the right (Emma's left). "Nashi, please get down from there."

"I'll be fine, and I'm certainly a better judge of my self than you two, so please don't."

"Oi!" Emma glared at Nashi. "You're hanging a bit too close to me, and I was here first."

Gajeel's eyes widened with fear. "No, don't you dare start…"

"I have just as much right to be here as you," Nashi retorted.

Emma swung over and headbutted Nashi, who somehow reeled back in pain without slipping and falling.

"Don't forget, I can properly retaliate to that now!" Nashi swung a metal fist into the side of Emma's face. "And remember, if you eat my arm, you face Elkhart's wrath on top of mine."

"Do I now?" Emma clutched the now-swollen side of her face, and used her other hand to slam an iron pole into Nashi.

"You're gonna fall!" screamed a terrified Natsu.

The two girls ignored him and continued to exchange blows, gaining the attention of the nearby crowd, and eventually the entire stadium.

* * *

"Well, this is an… interesting… turn that the match has taken. Our audience is no longer interested in the fight between Gildarts and Elkhart, and instead wants to see how this incredibly bizarre fight between Dragon King's Nashi Heartfilia and Emma Redfox will play out."

Elkhart and Gildarts turned and looked up at the scene which was indeed, as Chapati had just described, quite bizarre. Elkhart covered his mouth as he tried to keep himself from laughing. "You know, I'm actually more interested in watching this than finishing the fight."

"To be fair, that was definitely not going to end in thirty minutes," Gildarts agreed. "However, it's moments like this that make me question whether Fairy Tail will remain competent over the years."

"They've got energy," Elkhart replied. "And they blow off steam by fighting. However, you're right. It is kind of stupid that they're doing it while hanging upside-down at a height that could easily kill them if they fell."

"They're not going to die, though," Gildarts replied. "Knowing you, you'd be rushing to help if you thought they were in danger."

Elkhart nodded. "They both know how to use their magic to lessen an impact. They should be fine."

The people directly below the fight cleared out in case of a fall, while Chapati did his best to provide commentary on the fight.

* * *

Meanwhile, a small, blue-haired girl stepped into the now-cleared space and stood directly below Nashi and Emma. She raised her arms directly toward the two of them, and a pair of aluminum poles shot up, slamming into the girls and sending them tumbling back up onto the wall.

"Oh! It seems that their guildmate, William Redfox, has arrived to break up the fight!" Chapati announced. "Also, a quick update: the match between Elkhart and Gildarts has ended in a tie, as they have run out of time."

Some of the audience made surprised sounds, while others laughed hysterically at what had just happened.

Akane glided down as William sank to her knees, retracting the poles, followed by Merlin breaking out of the crowd and jogging over.

"Are you alright?" Merlin asked.

William nodded. "I'm nowhere near my limit. I just thought I'd keep it that way."

"Good," Akane replied. "I can carry you both back up to the rest of the group if you like."

"Sure," the twins simultaneously replied.

Akane's eyes widened. "Okay, I've been with you two for six months, and that still freaks me out."

"Oh, well," they simultaneously said.

"Stop it!" Akane snapped.

"Okay, okay," Merlin waved him off. "Just take us back up there, will you? I have a sister to chew out over a matter of complete stupidity."

* * *

"And the next match: Sabertooth A Team's Rufus Lore versus Sabertooth B Team's Orga Nanagear!"

"This should be interesting." Gray leaned over to get a better view.

Suddenly, Rufus blasted Orga with a huge fireball, following up with a pillar of Earth and knocking him out.

"What?!" Gray stared in shock. "Last time I met them, they were on par with each other!"

"It seems he's memorized a bit of my magic," Elkhart observed.

"Well, I guess we wait for the last match of the day," Gajeel decided. "Personally, I'm starving. I'm going to go grab a bite to eat."

* * *

Hisoka opened his eyes, then struggled up into a slouching position, unable to manage sitting up straight. He looked over and saw Nashi sitting next to his bed.

"Hey," Nashi greeted. "You, uh, missed the first three matches. Sorry for not telling you."

"I guess I did overexert myself," Hisoka mused.

"Using dragonslayer magic through motion sickness? Of course you overexerted yourself. Anyway, William's filling in as a reserve member while you recover."

"Cool. I hope she doesn't re-injure herself. I spent a lot of time just healing her to the point where she is now."

"I said she could after judging her as physically fit enough," Porlyusica conceded. "It's entirely up to her."

"Anyway, did I miss anything interesting?" Hisoka asked curiously

Nashi tensed up. "No!"

"Even if I couldn't hear your brainwaves, I could tell you were lying there."

"Nothing happened!"

"Please? I really missed out on everything, recovering from the contest."

"I'm not telling you anything!"

"Just tell me everything except whatever you're embarrassed about."

The air around Nashi began to heat up. Then she sighed. "Fine."

* * *

"The fourth and final pairing for the day: Dragon King's William Redfox versus Hallowguard's Mau Silverguard!"

Merlin placed a hand on his sister's shoulder. "Good luck, Will."

William nodded. "I'll do my best."

"I will say that I've run into this guy a few times," Elkhart notified. "His ability seems to be mimicking the elemental magics of those nearby."

"I'll keep that in mind," William acknowledged. She headed out into the arena to face her opponent.

"So you're from Dragon King." His eyes were black, and he had medium-length purple hair. He was about the same height as Hisoka

"You already know I am," replied William.

"And you people humiliated my guild." His arm charged with lightning.

* * *

"He seems to be mimicking your magic," Merlin said to Elkhart.

Elkhart shook his head. "That feels more like Laxus' lightning. And yes, there is a difference."

* * *

Mau launched a lightning bolt at William.

"Douryuu no Uroko!" The bolt hit William, but she just stood there, unaffected. When the lightning cleared, she was revealed to be covered in copper scales. "Sorry, but copper is far more conductive than flesh."

"It's also more conductive of heat!" Mau's hand lit up with fire, and he charged at William.

"Inbaaryuukon!" William met his attack with an invar pillar. "Invar, on the other hand…"

"Alloys…?"

"Yeah, my brother and I seem to be able to do that."

"Interesting…" Mau extended an iron pole toward William. "For some reason, when I try to mimic your element, I only get iron."

William blocked the pole with her hand, and her face twisted in pain. She grabbed her arm in order to brace it against any structural failure. "What's your problem? We won fair and square."

"Did you?!" Mau snapped. "That Hisoka fellow couldn't even move, not enough to really do anything, and he sent Tolla off like it was nothing, even though she could move and use magic perfectly fine. He humiliated her!" He launched fireball after fireball at William, who reacted by changing her copper scales to invar.

"It's not my fault it was more than just a game to him. He was just determined. Emotions can have a strong effect on magic, you know."

"I wonder that means for me, since I'm pretty pissed at your guild!" He slammed his hands on the ground, sending a pillar of earth at William.

"Chitanryuu no Uroko!" William changed the scales on just her arm into titanium, blocking the attack with that arm. Then she dropped to her knees as she felt her leg bones approaching their llimit.

"I wonder…" Mau raised his hand, and a superfluous crimson energy engulfed his arm.

* * *

Akane's eyes widened. "My magic… he's going to take her out with my magic…"

"I think he plans to do more than that," Elkhart corrected. He activated his meteor spell, flying over to Chapati and the others. "Stop the match," he ordered.

"What?"

"I said stop the match! If you let him have his way, he's going to kill her. Please!"

"It's out of my power," Chapati confessed. "I'm sorry. You have to talk to the referee."

"Where is he?"

Chapati pointed, and Elkhart looked down to see Mato watching with concern. He turned back to Chapati. "Thanks." Then he shot back down to meet the mascot. "Stop the match!"

"Uh…"

* * *

"That's Akane's magic."

"Interesting, isn't it?" Mau inquired. "To be brought down by the very magic that saved your life." He charged at William.

William brought up a pair of titanium-scaled arms to block the attack, but was knocked back as the energy shattered her scales like glass.

"Ironic, isn't it?" Mau inquired.

"This is a game, not a fight to the death!" William got to her feet, her legs shaking not from structural failure, but from fear.

"There's no rule against it." Mau lunged again, and William dodged, falling on all fours and letting out a cry of pain as her right arm gave. "When someone humiliates my friends, they don't get off the hook so easily."

William held her newly-broken right arm close as she struggled to her feet, her scales coming undone. "Tangusutenryuukon!" She extended a tungsten pole at Mau, letting it detach as a projectile.

Mau punched the pole with the crimson energy, shattering it. "You know very well that this stuff shatters metal." He charged forward, slashing at William.

She was unprotected this time. Her scales were gone, and she could only use one arm. She watched as the crimson energy formed into a blade and slashed across her torso. Fear had completely shut down her sense of pain. In fact, her fear had shut itself down, as William just laid there, taking blow after blow. Her vision faded to black as her consciousness left her.

Mato raised a hand, signaling for the match to stop. "This has gone too far-kabo! You're going to kill her-kabo!"

"I don't care about the match at this point," Mau glowered, continuing to slash repeatedly at his unconscious opponent. He raised his hand for another blow, when someone grabbed his arm. He looked over to see the kid he recognized as Akane Skofnung, one of the other Dragon King members.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing?" A look of absolute murder crossed Akane's face.

Mau was about to answer, when an iron pole slammed into his stomach.

Akane looked over to see Emma with a similar look of fury on her face. "Trying to kill my little sister, for one thing."

"Will!" Merlin ran over to assess William's injuries. His heart started pounding even faster than before. "No, no, no…!"

Suddenly, William vanished. Merlin looked around frantically and finally saw her in Minerva's arms. He watched as Minerva carried his sister over to Wendy.

Akane and Emma were about to charge Mau again, when suddenly, someone beat them to it. Something flashed across their view, and there was now a black demonic hand clutching his throat.

"This isn't your fight, Eallesander."

"A person is in danger, and I wish to see them saved," Eallesander argued. "It doesn't matter whose business it is."

"Fine." She glanced over and saw Hiromi right next to them.

"Raienryuu no Tekken!" Hiromi's arm charged up with electrified flame, and he punched Mau with incredible force.

Gajeel and Levy ran out onto the battlefield. Gajeel ran an iron blade straight through Mau.

"And how do _you_ like that?" Gajeel glowered. "Maybe it would be a better idea for you to stay the hell away from our daughter!"

"Solid Script: Shockwave!" Gajeel jumped back as Levy created a shockwave that sent Mau flying.

Henri flew over and drew a sword from her requip inventory. "Did it really have to come to this?" she demanded, looking Mau straight in the eye.

Nashi ran out to join them. "Karyuu no Kagizume!" She aimed a flame-powered kick at Mau's face, but was suddenly blocked by a man who now stood between Mau and everyone else.

"Everyone, stop!" Utkarsh ordered. "Do you want to make this worse than it already is?"

"Thanks, Utkarsh."

Utkarsh spun around to face his guildmate, a look of fury crossing his face. "Save your gratitude for later." He turned back to the others. "He's a member of our guild. We'll handle it." He spun around to face Mau. "That does not, however, mean we'll let you off easy, especially not the guildmaster." Suddenly, he swung his arm around and slammed it into a specific point on the back of Mau's head, knocking him out. "Nor me, for that matter." He turned to the others. "I am deeply sorry for my guildmate's behavior," he apologized. "I would like you to know that my guild plans to take full responsibility for this incident."

"Like getting disqualified from the Games?" Akane inquired.

"Whatever they decide," Utkarsh replied. "We should never have let him participate in the first place." He bent down and picked up his unconscious guildmate, then carried him back towards the rest of his guild.

Merlin looked over and saw Wendy bent over something. "Will…" He ran toward where they were, while the others followed suit, with Henri, Akane and Eallesander flying up.

Everyone gathered around and watched as Wendy used up all her magic trying to heal William. She looked up at the others with a look of fear.

"I should have you know I did not feel a heartbeat when I was carrying her over here."

Wendy nodded. "I've managed to get a very weak pulse going, but I'm afraid it won't last long."

Merlin punched the wall with a titanium-coated fist, creating a large dent with a web-like array of cracks. "Dammit! I should have gone out as soon as she went unconscious!"

Just then, Elkhart flew up onto the wall and dropped to the floor. "How is she?"

Emma grabbed him by the shirt. "Where the hell were you?!"

"Talking to the other members of Hallowguard, particularly the guildmaster," Elkhart replied. "Apparently, she's furious about what just happened."

Akane strode over to William and picked her up. "I'm taking her to Hisoka."

"Hisoka's still recovering," Nashi notified.

"I don't care!" Akane retorted. "Will's on death's door, and Wendy's out of magic. I don't think Hisoka will care either." He took William down the hallway. "Hold on, Will," he whispered.

"I'm going with him." Merlin headed after Akane.

"Same." Emma followed suit.

* * *

Hisoka woke up to someone shaking him. He looked up to see Merlin standing over him. "What?" He sat up, looked around, and gasped as he saw William. He sort of fell out of his bed, then crawled over to William's bed. "What the hell happened?!"

"Her opponent tried to kill her," Emma replied. "And if you don't use your magic right now, he'll be successful."

Hisoka looked around at Akane, Emma and Merlin. Their fearful looks said it all. He nodded and placed his hands on the most severe-looking wound – a gash across her torso. As he activated his healing magic, his eyes widened. "Akane, was it your magic that did this?"

"You know I never would," Akane replied.

"Will's opponent was able to mimic other people's elements," Merlin explained.

Hisoka nodded, and felt his magic running out. He activated Second Origin and continued to pour out all of that. Then he continued to Fifth Origin. When he was finished, he looked up at the others with a grave look.

Merlin shook his head in denial. "No. No, please… no, no, no…"

"She can't be!" Emma snapped. She grabbed Hisoka by the shirt collar and pulled him close. "Keep going! Please, bring her back!"

"I'm sorry. I'm out of magic. There's nothing else I can do! If I continue to use Fifth Origin, we'll both die."

"Let me see." Porlyusica pushed them aside and knelt next to William. She took out a scanner and ran it over William's entire body. She put the scanner away, looked up at them and shook her head.

Tears began to run down Merlin's face. "No…"

"She is unlikely to survive, even in my care," Porlyusica admitted. She stood up. "However, that does not mean I'm giving up! Quite the opposite, in fact." She turned to Merlin and Emma and placed a reassuring hand on each of their shoulders. "And don't you give up either. I swear I will do everything in my power to save your sister!"

Gajeel and Levy burst into the room.

"Is she going to be okay?" Levy asked.

"Get out!" Porlyusica snapped. "Everybody, get out! Except you, Hisoka. You're still recovering. If you want your friend to survive, I'm going to need all the focusing ability I can get."

Everyone stared at her wide-eyed for a moment, then each gave some sort of confirming gesture and filed out of the room.

 _Please, Will,_ Merlin silently begged. _Please survive._

* * *

 **When I was about to write this, I wasn't expecting William's condition to be this extreme, but then I wrote it and… this. I'm not going to say it this time, as this was too depressing to properly enjoy, but I hope you enjoy future chapters.**


	31. GMG Arc - Broken Wings

"How is she?"

Merlin looked up at Elkhart as he joined him outside of the hotel. "Hey."

Elkhart walked over and stood next to Merlin. "You going to answer my question?"

Merlin shrugged. "According to Porlyusica, she's probably going to die."

"Don't let that happen," Elkhart advised.

"What can I do? I have no healing magic or medical expertise."

"You have a strong bond with her, though," Elkhart pointed out. "You're her twin. That bond is responsible for a bunch of things, like your ability to use magic in Edolas and retain different metals."

"How are those sorts of things supposed to save William!" Merlin snapped. "There's nothing I can do except sit back and hope for the best."

Elkhart nodded. "Yeah. You can. However, there are properties to that bond that even I don't know about. Your hope may be what saves her life."

Merlin looked down at the ground. "Yeah. I guess so."

"Come on. Let's go inside."

Merlin nodded and pulled out a key, unlocking the door and opening it. The two walked inside to join the rest of Dragon King, except Hisoka and William, who were still in the infirmary with Porlyusica.

"Hey, Elkhart," Emma greeted with a gloomy tone.

"Hey," Elkhart replied. He followed Merlin over to his bed and sat with him.

A knock sounded on the door. Nashi stood up and went to answer it, opening the door to reveal Utkarsh. "What do you want?" Nashi demanded.

"To apologize for what happened to your friend," Utkarsh replied. "I heard she was crippled recently. Mau should never have done what he did, and based on what we knew about his tendencies, we should never have let that fight go on."

"Indeed," Elkhart agreed. "I've met him several times on jobs. He cares too much about his closest friends and doesn't give a shit about anyone else."

"So what's the verdict?" asked Emma.

"Surprisingly enough, nobody is being disqualified," Utkarsh explained. "While they don't take responsibility for any deaths that occur, we did cause quite the commotion by all running into the arena. Although, to be fair, the referee ordered the match to stop before that happened."

Everyone sat or stood around the room in silence for a moment.

"And Mau?" asked Thomas.

"Even though he deserves to be kicked out of the guild, Master Neville is letting him stay, and is even considering letting him continue to be in the Games."

Emma jumped up from the bed she was sitting in, and strode over to Utkarsh, shoving Nashi aside and grabbing the man by the shirt, her concern turning to anger. "That's bullshit!"

"I will have you know that I was against this," Utkarsh protested, continuing to maintain a straight face, even with Emma staring him down. "However, there's going to be a vote among the entire team other than him. It will take three votes to keep him in, and I am not voting in his favor. I don't think anyone else is, either. We're all furious at him."

"I don't care about that!" Emma snapped, slamming Utkarsh against the wall and knocking his glasses into a crooked position. "If that man ever sets foot in that arena or goes near my sister again, I'm going to flay him alive! Do you understand me?!"

Utkarsh straightened his glasses. "I have no intention of stopping you. In fact, I will gladly pass along that warning to him. Now will you please let go of me?"

Emma stood there for a moment, not moving.

Nashi stood up and placed a hand on Emma's shoulder from behind, surprising everyone with the non-hostile gesture. As Emma turned her head toward Nashi, Nashi nodded. "Let him go. He didn't do anything."

Emma's expression remained frozen for a moment as tears formed in her eyes and streamed down her face. She pushed Nashi's hand away, then slowly opened the hand that was gripping Utkarsh.

"Thank you." Utkarsh straightened his shirt. "By the way, how is William?"

"Hanging onto life… by less… than a thread," Emma sniffed. "Okay? For all we know, she's already dead and… and the news… is on its way… to the hotel. That's what your murderer friend did to my little sister! Now you go back… to your master… and you explain to her… the life that… that man… has almost certainly destroyed, dammit!" She sank to her knees and broke off into sobbing.

Utkarsh knelt in front of Emma, then wrapped his arms around her. "I'm doing everything I can to prevent him from getting away with it. And I won't let him near your sister again. Okay?"

Emma nodded, and Utkarsh broke the embrace and stood up, then turned and exited the building.

* * *

Hisoka knelt next to William. While he could faintly sense life in her, he could no longer hear a heartbeat. "Dammit, William! This is taking all the magic I can muster. You'd better survive." He listened to the rhythm of his own heart, trying to make a connection to William's heart. " _We n' de ya ho, we n' de ya ho; we n' de ya, we n' de ya; ho ho ho ho he ya ho, he ya ho; ya, ya, ya._ " He tried to make his singing match the rhythm of his heart, then extended that rhythm to William's heart, willing it to beat with his. Relief passed through his head as William's heart started beating, but he kept singing, intending to make sure her heartbeat was stable. " _We n' de ya ho, we n' de ya ho; we n' de ya, we n' de ya; ho ho ho ho he ya ho, he ya ho; ya, ya, ya._ " Then, he moved to her wounds, desperately trying to close them.

Wendy walked into the room. "Does your singing help with your magic?"

Hisoka nodded. "Her heart stopped, so I was getting a steady rhythm, and yeah, music helps me connect to people's hearts. That song was called 'I am of the Great Spirit'."

"That was from your home?"

"Yeah. And that song I was singing to you yesterday? That was from a nearby tribe. Flumentia did a lot of traveling with me, you see."

Wendy nodded and looked over at William.

"Unfortunately, that bastard was using Akane's magic, and when that stuff inflicts a wound, the damage is heavily resistant to healing magic. My singing helps slightly against that, but not much."

"Well, I'm here to assist you," Wendy replied. "It may be resisting, but with the combined effects of our healing magic, that should be meaningless."

"Don't underestimate the damage Akane's magic can do," Hisoka warned. "Even with my magic, her condition continues to get worse. It'll take not only our power, but William's as well."

Wendy nodded and placed her hands over William's body, the turquoise aura appearing and trying to close the wounds. Hisoka then added his power to the mix. It seemed to work a little better, to the point of catching Hisoka off guard.

Hisoka held up his hands, looking at them with surprise.

"I believe it may have been our two elements reacting with one another," Wendy theorized. "Water and air tend to become quite powerful when you combine the two. After all, that's what weather is."

Hisoka nodded. "That makes sense. It was substantially more effective than if we had used our magic separately." He examined William, finding that she continued to get weaker, though at a slower rate. "I wonder if we can heal some of her older injuries."

Wendy shook her head. "Those are permanent. They can be made a little better, but those wounds have had enough time to become a normal part of her body."

"But at least you can repair her more recent bone breaks?" Hisoka inquired.

"Well, if that crimson magic had an effect on the bones as well, it would take a few days, especially since the girl's skeleton is made of steel rather than the normal calcium phosphate. But right now, we should focus on keeping her alive." She looked over at Porlyusica, who had fallen asleep at a desk, then looked back at Hisoka. "I think you should get back to your lodging. I'll make sure she's safe. You need your sleep for tomorrow."

Hisoka stood up and walked toward the door. "Yeah, I think I've fully recovered from the motion sickness, though I'm still a bit fluff-headed from the blood loss. And you can take care of William." He stopped, thinking for a moment. "Actually, you know what? You can't save her alone. I do have one thing I can use, and I'm pretty sure it'll stabilize her. If we continue with the way we're approaching this, even with what we just discovered about our magic, she's going to die."

"What's this trick of yours?"

Hisoka once again knelt by William's bed, and once again started singing the same song. When he was done, his hands started glowing brighter. "Fourth Origin: Release." The wounds began to close much more quickly, and William's heartbeat and breathing became regular. As he finished, Hisoka collapsed onto the floor, breathing heavily.

"Are you alright?" Wendy asked.

"I just poured a bit of my soul into William," Hisoka panted. "Shaving off a bit of your soul can be incredibly draining." He pulled himself into a sitting position and shakily got to his feet. "Although, it doesn't really have any permanent effects until it kills you."

William's eyes opened.

"And as you can see, it was super-effective."

"W-What happened?" William croaked.

"You were hanging onto life by a thread for quite some time," Hisoka explained. "And while we kept trying to strengthen the thread, I realized I would be able to reach down and grab you, though it put me in a precarious position as well."

"What?"

"Metaphor," Hisoka replied. "Sorry. I come up with some really weird metaphors sometimes."

"What Hisoka means," Wendy explained, "is that you almost died, and it took a lot to bring you back."

"I was… fighting someone… it's really fuzzy, though…" William stared up at the ceiling, lost in thought.

"That would be due to the prolonged blood loss," Hisoka explained. "Are you thinking clearly enough to remember why you were fighting?"

"Some contest… the name escapes me…"

"The Grand Magic Games…"

"Yeah… I was finally healed enough to fight…" her eyes widened in realization. "I just got more badly hurt. I shouldn't have." Her hands clenched into fists, which was relieving, as it showed her strength was returning.

Hisoka placed a hand on William's shoulder, calming her emotions. "Nobody blames you, William. It was Mau who decided winning the match wasn't enough." He stood up and stumbled toward the door. "I'm going to go tell the others you're okay."

* * *

Utkarsh stepped into his hotel to see the team and guild master sitting at the table. He flashed an angry look at Mau.

"I do hope you were able to comfort them," Master Neville inquired.

Utkarsh nodded. "Her older sister was in tears. Apparently, she's unlikely to survive."

Neville nodded, then flashed a warning glare at Mau. "You're lucky I'm not kicking you out of the guild. If it were one of our own guild members, that would be a different matter. Also, if that girl dies, you _are_ out of the guild. And if you ever do something like that again, you are never seeing this guild again!" She breathed heavily for a moment, then continued. "You have caused an outrage with the spectators and the other guilds. You've gotten our entire guild in legal trouble. Is that what you wanted?! This is why it's a problem that you show no remorse for anyone else. It hurts those you do care about."

Mau crossed his arms and looked away. "I wasn't going to let them get away with embarrassing my guildmates."

"I got third place!" Tolla snapped. "You call that being embarrassed?"

"Even seventh place is alright," Ulsu added. "We're not going to win everything, no matter how good we get."

"Lucy exploited your weakness," Mau retorted, looking at Ulsu. Then he turned to Tolla. "Also, Hisoka was way too motion sick to pull off that move fairly."

"He was way too determined to rule out that possibility," Tolla argued. "You know as well as I do what sort of effect emotions have on magic."

Mau gave a _tsk_ of annoyance.

"Plus, of course she exploited my weakness," Ulsu added. "That was a smart move. If you see a weakness your opponent has, of course you take advantage of that."

"Then that's what I did," Mau replied. "She was crippled, and therefore couldn't take very many hits, or stand up very long, for that matter."

"We subdue our opponents in the Games, not kill them!" Utkarsh snapped, fury rising in his voice. "When we kill our opponents, unimaginable consequences follow! If you can't get it through your thick skull that killing people is not a good thing, ever, then you most certainly should not participate in the Grand Magic Games. Am I making myself clear?!"

"Key word: 'magic'." Mau looked Utkarsh in the eye with a straight face. "Are you sure you should be in the Games? Or the guild, for that matter?"

Utkarsh's eyes widened with absolute fury. He stormed over, jumped over the table and grabbed Mau by the front of the shirt. He pulled the man in, their faces inches apart. "What the hell did you just say?!"

Mau gave a passive smile. "You heard me. Wizard guilds are a place for wizards, as in people who can use magic. And, needless to say, the Grand Magic Games are also for wizards. I've never really understood why Master Neville let you into the guild when you don't meet that requirement."

Utkarsh spun around, swinging Mau around with him, and flipped the mage over his head, tossing him like a doll against the far wall. Then he leaped across the room and landed in front of the slowly recovering man, bending over, lifting him up and slamming him into the wall once more. "Say that again!"

"You're not a wizard."

Utkarsh screamed in rage, then kicked Mau into the stomach, ramming him into the wall so hard that he crashed through it. He then leaped through after him and pinned him to the ground with one hand. He then used his other hand to punch him repeatedly in the face.

"Utkarsh, stop!" Tolla yelled.

Utkarsh ignored her, beating Mau until he was too dazed to get up, then stood up and started kicking him repeatedly.

"Dammit, Utkarsh!" Ulsu melted into the shadows, darting over, materializing behind Utkarsh, and grappled him, restraining his arms and pulling him away while he struggled madly. "Damn, you're strong." She struggled to get him back into their lodging and, with some assistance from her guildmates, sat him down in a chair.

"Get off of me!"

Burah punched Utkarsh once in the face to stun him so he wouldn't get back up. "Come to your senses, man. What's wrong with you?"

"You heard what he said," Utkarsh spat.

"Yeah, but it's not like you to beat up somebody for insulting you."

"You don't know a thing about me! I was the only member of my family who couldn't use magic, alright? I trained and trained, and I never gave up. Then I finally got accepted into a wizard guild, and there are still people like _him_!" He jerked his head toward Mau, who was now lying unconscious on the ground outside. "I shouldn't have jumped in to defend him. I should have just let all of that girl's friends and family give him what he deserved."

Burah sighed. "Look, I know he just said some offensive things to you and doesn't seem to give a shit about other people's lives, but we need to keep cool heads about this. Violence won't help anyone."

"But that did feel good."

"And that's the kind of thinking that will cause problems in the long run," Burah replied. "Please don't overdo it."

"Right…" Utkarsh sat up straight and repositioned his glasses, which had somehow stayed on his face during the fight. "So, I guess we should decide what to do from here?"

Tolla nodded. "That would be wise."

Utkarsh raised his hand. "Personally, I vote that we kick Mau off of the team."

Burah nodded and raised his hand as well. "I vote the same."

Ulsu raised her hand as well, followed by Tolla.

"I know this vote is technically among your team, but…" Neville raised a hand as well.

Utkarsh nodded and looked at Mau through the hole he had made. "So what should we do with him now? I may hate him at the moment, but that's not exactly a good reason to leave him out there."

Burah walked over and climbed through the hole. "I'll take him to Fairy Tail's medic."

"No!" Utkarsh jumped up from his seat. "That wouldn't be a good idea."

"Why?"

"Because that's where William is. I already promised her sister that I wouldn't let Mau anywhere near her."

"Well, they're both unconscious patients, so…"

"And Emma promised that if Mau went anywhere near William again, she'd kill him quite violently. And I have no intention of stopping her. Now most people would be exaggerating if they said something like that, but she seemed to be genuinely intending to follow through on that threat, especially since William is still dying – possibly even already dead."

Burah's eyes widened. Then he regained his calm and bent down, picking up the unconscious man. "Still, he needs medical attention after your tantrum. Maybe we can put him in a separate room."

Utkarsh shrugged. "At this point, I don't give a shit. I was just warning you of the possible consequences."

* * *

Wendy perked up to the sound of knocking, which also managed to wake Porlyusica up. Porlyusica slowly got to her feet, walked over and opened the door to see a tall, bald-headed man supporting an unconscious, beaten-up Mau.

"I'm not putting that man in the same room as William," Porlyusica asserted. "It's too dangerous."

"So, William's still alive?"

"Alive and stable, thanks to Hisoka shaving off a bit of his soul," Wendy replied. "She's asleep at the moment. Now get that monster out of here."

"He needs medical attention," the man protested. "I'm not trying to put him in the same room with William, or even excuse what he did. In fact, we've unanimously agreed to kick him off the team. However, that's no reason to just ignore his injuries."

"Will he live without treatment?" Porlyusica queried, her face darkening with anger.

"Yeah, but…"

"Then don't waste my time with him!" Porlyusica snapped. "He brought this on himself, by making it so I needed to spend so much time saving the girl he nearly killed. Get out!" She slammed the door shut, then turned and began towards William, but suddenly gasped, clutching her heart and dropping to her knees.

"Porlyusica-san, are you alright?" Wendy went over to the medic.

"I'm fine," Porlyusica replied. "Just stressed from nearly losing a patient, that's all." She scooted over to William.

"Let me help you." Wendy's hands started to light up with healing magic.

"No!" Porlyusica snapped. "Save it for William. You can't get rid of old age, and that girl certainly needs your magic more than I do. You were just in the middle of repairing her skeleton, were you not?"

"Right." Wendy resumed healing William. "It's hard to tell, since I'm not familiar with this type of magical injury, but… if Hisoka and I continually expend our magic for the next few days, she should be conscious by tomorrow, and able to walk in another two days."

Porlyusica nodded. "I may be able to make it even quicker with my skills."

"Yeah. That would make sense."

* * *

The door to the hotel opened, and Hisoka walked in to join the others. "Hey, any idea why Emma's on the roof?"

Merlin shrugged. "It's the first we've heard of it. She went off somewhere to sulk, and we didn't know where until you walked in, since we just let it be. What's the news?"

"She's alive. A bit fluff-headed from the blood loss, but she'll live."

"Even with those wounds?" inquired Akane. "I mean, he was using my element, which means…"

"Yeah," Hisoka interrupted. "I know."

"I don't," protested Merlin. "What about your magic?"

"Agreed," Nashi chimed in. "I'm curious."

"My magic is basically destructive energy," Akane explained. "Wounds inflicted by it have a really hard time healing."

Hisoka noddedand rolled up his sleeve, revealing a few small scars.

"Huh." Nashi took a casual slurp from the torch she was holding. "I never noticed that back when I took you clothes shopping."

"The thing is, I don't scar," Hisoka explained. "My healing magic has a passive effect on me, which means the damage I take is never permanent unless it kills me. Akane and I used to spar when we were little, and I got a few nicks along the way. You see…" He rolled his sleeve back down. "…wounds inflicted by that stuff are highly resistant to healing magic. That's why William was still hanging by a thread after Wendy and I each got to her."

Merlin's eyes widened with concern. "It was that bad…"

"However, I saved her with a little trick of mine. I put a bit of my life into hers."

* * *

Emma listened as Hisoka explained to the others inside the news about William. "Thank goodness," she whispered to herself.

"You seem a bit lonely up here."

Emma turned. "Oh, hey, Sander."

Eallesander tilted their head in confusion. "'Sander'?"

"Short for 'Eallesander'," Emma explained. "It's easier to say in a casual greeting."

"I see." Eallesander sat down next to Emma. "So what news? I heard you say 'thank goodness' as I was flying down here."

Emma nodded. "Will is in stable condition."

Eallesander smiled. "That's good. Oh, and if you're going to abbreviate my name, I prefer 'Ealles'."

"Understood." Emma looked up at the starry sky. "You know what? I've made a decision."

"Hm?"

"I'm going to do tomorrow's contest," Emma declared. "Will's on the mend, and I want to do something incredible that shows how awesome of a sister she has."

Eallesander smiled. "I'm sure she'll enjoy that."

"Yeah." Emma jumped down from the roof. "Well, I'm going to bed. Goodnight, Ealles."

"Goodnight." Eallesander spread their wings and flew off into the night.

* * *

 **Well, another day of the Grand Magic Games reaches its conclusion. I imagine some of you will probably be thinking that I'm picking on William by crippling her and then putting her in a bunch of danger. However, this is unintentional (sometimes when an idea for my writing plays out in my head, it's burned into my skull as what must happen). Hope you enjoyed!**


	32. GMG Arc - Beautiful Chaos

"Good morning and welcome to the third day of the X812 Grand Magic Games! I'm your emcee, Chapati Rola, joined by 8-Island owner Yajima-san, and today as our guest speaker, we have Magic Council member Invel Yura."

Gray looked up at where the commentators were sitting and grinned. "So that's why you're here?" He turned to Nero.

"Yeah," Nero replied. "Good to see you, Dad."

"Now without further ado, let's give you the rankings of the day! In eighth place, with one point, we have Lamia Scale. In seventh place, with eleven points: Crime Sorcier. In fifth place, tied at nineteen points, we have Dragon King and Fairy Tail B Team. In second place, we have a three-way tie at twenty-three points between Fairy Tail A Team and both Sabertooth teams. And in first place, with twenty-nine points: Hallowguard!"

The crowd cheered

"The contest of the day is called: Limbo!"

* * *

Over at Sabertooth, a black-haired girl with a blue streak stood up. She looked to be about fourteen or fifteen. "I'll do this one. It's about time I did something." She headed out into the arena.

"From Sabertooth B Team, we have Carli Fullbuster!"

* * *

"So she's going to be in this one…" Emma stood up and turned to the rest of the team. "Wish me luck!" She walked out into the arena.

"From Dragon King: Emma Redfox!"

* * *

"It sounds a bit physical," Utkarsh theorized, standing up. "I think I'll do this one."

"I have no objection," stated Burah.

The others nodded in agreement.

"From Hallowguard: Utkarsh Alpine!"

* * *

"I'm interested in this one, and I didn't exactly get to fight to a conclusion yesterday." Elkhart stood up and headed out.

"From Fairy Tail B Team: Elkhart Scarlet-Fernandes!"

* * *

"From Sabertooth A Team: Yukino Agria! From Crime Sorcier: Meredy! From Fairy Tail A Team: Gildarts Clive! From Lamia Scale: Sherry Akatsuki!"

The respective contestants stepped out to join the others.

"Now for the rules: You are in a pocket dimension where the rules of space don't quite match up with this universe. Your goal is to rescue your guild master from where they are hidden in this dimension, and then get them and yourself through an exit portal. Those guilds with more than one team participating will have an alternate target which they have to rescue. Fairy Tail B Team will be targeting Macao Conbolt, and Sabertooth B Team will be rescuing Lector."

"So that's where Henri went…" Nashi realized.

"Yeah, and notice that Erza's missing as well." Merlin pointed out the empty seat where the guild master usually sat.

"Keep in mind that your guild master is not allowed to use magic. Each one is wearing a pair of specially-made magic-sealing gloves. If they are removed, the contestant will be disqualified. Begin!"

The contestants disappeared, and an array of LacrimaVision displays popped up around the edge of the arena, showing a dark world with floating polyhedral structures flying around and crashing into one another.

* * *

"Interesting…" Emma looked around, sidestepping an oncoming cube as it crashed into the octahedron she was standing on. "So I have to find Henri, do I?" She looked around. There were a few superflat, sharp-edged objects flying around at high speeds. "I suppose I'd better avoid those things, or perhaps…" She caught one of the fragments from the impact in her hand.

* * *

"Interesting." Utkarsh pulled out his glasses. "I suppose I can't test it out with stuff from this dimension, since it seems to work differently." He threw the still-folded-up glasses at a passing cube. It followed a confusing path as it got pulled by various different gravitational fields, missing the target but clattering to the surface of an octahedron.

* * *

The audience watched Utkarsh's strange move in confusion.

"Well… that's an interesting action to take," Chapati commented. "Let's watch and find out what his intentions were."

* * *

Utkarsh backed up a few feet, then ran and jumped off the edge, sailing through the air in a strangely curved trajectory and skidding to a stop on the octahedron. He picked up his glasses, frowning as he discovered that the lenses had been shattered. "Looks like I'll be stuck wearing my goggles for a bit." He walked along the surface of the object, stumbling a bit as he walked onto another face and the gravity changed direction. "Now where am I supposed to find Master Neville?"

* * *

Carli placed her hands on the surface of her cube, causing ice to spurt out of it and extend towards a dodecahedron. As the ice tendril connected, it threatened to shatter as the two objects tried to follow different trajectories. Carli reinforced the ice, and the two objects started spinning around one another. "These things do _not_ want their trajectory messed with," she noted as she ran along her ice bridge.

* * *

"Weird," Emma pondered. "I'm not getting motion sick in here." She took a bite out of the fragment she had caught, chewing and swallowing it. "As I thought. Black diamond." She ate the rest of it and allowed the carbon to assimilate into her system, then extended an arm toward a tetrahedron. "Kouryuu no Ikari!" Her hand morphed into a base, which then sprouted a large grappling hook attached by a steel cable. She then swung it at the tetrahedron, and it caught on one of the corners. She gave it a yank, and it started spinning wildly while she was pulled off her feet. She grabbed on, clinging desperately as it continued to spin.

Emma stood up, slightly dazed, then realized the view above her was spinning wildly. She looked down and realized that the tetrahedron she had landed on now seemed to be perfectly still. "I bet Elkhart's going to enjoy this. It seems to be right up his alley."

* * *

Elkhart looked around and smiled. "Well, this should be a piece of cake, as long as my theory is correct as to how this new technique works." He released a pulse of energy, and the gravity and special manipulations were dispersed, leaving him floating. "It'll be back, but for now… meteor!" He flew around, searching for something of interest. "Incredible… this place must be huge for me to still not have encountered anyone." He tilted his head curiously as he saw a perfect sphere. "Interesting…" he looked around, and couldn't see anything other than polyhedra, and then… this. He flew around the sphere, then found an opening. "Well, then…" he flew inside to find Macao wearing a strange pair of gloves.

"Yo," Macao greeted. "Can you get me out of here? These gloves are becoming a bit uncomfortable."

"That was lucky," Elkhart commented. "This is a huge place, so I shouldn't have found you so quickly."

Macao shrugged. "Well, good for you. Shall we find an exit portal, then?"

Elkhart sighed. "Easier said than done. Well, anyway, let's go." He grabbed Macao and once again activated his meteor spell, flying out onto the surface of the sphere just as his relativity pulse wore off. He looked around. "The trouble is, we have no idea what the exit portals look like."

* * *

Utkarsh planted his feet on the surface of the sphere. "Well, this is different." He walked around the sphere and stumbled upon an opening. Then he peeked inside and spotted his guild master.

"Hello," Neville greeted. "Are you going to rescue me or what?"

Utkarsh raised an eyebrow. "It seems I found you a bit quickly."

Neville shrugged. "According to the people who put me here, the hard part was supposed to be getting out. You guys were all dropped off near your target."

Utkarsh shrugged. "I mean, I don't know what the exit portals look like, but that should be the only difficulty." He stroked his beard, taking a moment to think. "No… they would never make it so easy." He poked his head out through the opening in the sphere and looked around. So far, nothing seemed to be amiss, but he could sense that something was wrong.

* * *

"Whoah! Emma leaps off of a rapidly spinning tetrahedron with perfect timing, sending herself straight onto the sphere containing her guild master," Chapati commented. "Meanwhile, we have Carli, who's trussed together all of the polyhedra in her area, and also made it to the surface of her sphere."

"In the meantime, Sherry seems to have forced a cube to send her straight to her sphere," Yajima added. "Also, Gildarts and Meredy seem to be having trouble, as their magic isn't suited for this type of thing."

"I'm personally quite interested by what Yukino is doing," Invel noted. "She's seeking assistance from her swan spirit, Deneb, who seems to be able to fly perfectly straight through the spacial manipulations."

"Well, she's already found her respective sphere." Chapati watched as Yukino landed. "I'd call that a job well done."

* * *

Meredy looked around. "Well, at least I know what direction he's in." She looked down at the glowing magenta hearts that indicated the sensory link. She watched as a sphere floated towards her and grinned. "I see." She ran and jumped, almost being pulled back down by the icosahedron she was standing on, but ultimately getting pulled in by the sphere. She walked around the sphere, searching, then found an opening and jumped in.

"Nice of you to join me," Jellal greeted.

Meredy nodded. "Well, come on. Let's find an exit portal."

* * *

Gildarts looked down, then grinned as he had an idea. He charged up his magic at his feet, then released it, causing the object he was standing on to burst into fragments and launch him toward the sphere. He tumbled to the surface, then got up and dusted himself off. "I wonder…" He walked around the sphere, eventually finding an opening and hopping in to see Erza.

"Interesting for them to choose you," Erza commented. "You're probably the least cut out for navigating this place."

"More importantly, this was too easy."

Erza grinned. "Well, you guys were deliberately placed near your targets. The hard part is getting out."

"Riiiight," Gildarts suddenly remembered. "The exit portals. We'll have to find one."

"I'm not sure 'find' would be the word you're looking for," Erza corrected. "Look outside."

Gildarts walked over to the opening. His eyes widened as he saw what the polyhedra were doing. "Wha…?"

"You'll have to kill those things in order to create an exit portal. They activate once everyone has found their guild master."

* * *

The spectators watched in surprise as the polyhedra on the screens each started to display a pair of pink magenta eyes, then began to unfold into monsters.

"Something I forgot to mention," Chapati explained. "Or rather, I preferred to surprise you with it. Once every contestant has found their guild master, all of the polyhedra turn into flying monsters. You have to defeat an icosahedron to create an exit portal. Unfortunately, the other monsters will protect it fiercely in addition to attacking the contestants."

* * *

"You've got to be kidding me!" Emma exclaimed. "We've gotta kill those things?"

"Too much for you to handle?" asked Henri.

"Nah, they just took me by surprise, that's all." Emma raised her fists, about to turn them into iron, when suddenly her eyes widened, and she sank to her knees, clutching her head.

"Emma! Are you alright?" Henri ran over and looked Emma in the eyes, stepping back in surprise when she discovered that her eyes had changed to magenta as opposed to the normal red. "Oi, what…?"

* * *

Chapati watched Emma's sudden reaction with surprise. "I'm not entirely certain what's going on here. What do you think, Yajima-san?"

"I don't know either," Yajima replied.

"I have a theory," Invel put in. "It may be because of that fragment she ate. The magic that was embedded in the polyhedra is now within her."

"Any idea what will happen to Emma-san?" Chapati asked.

Invel shook his head. "You're the one who designed this game. If you don't know what it will do to a person, none of us do. All we can do is wait and see what happens."

* * *

"So I have to fight these things?" Utkarsh inquired.

"Indeed," Neville confirmed, pointing at one that had formed from an icosahedron. "If you kill that one, it will turn into an exit portal.

"They're armored, though. I don't have any magic, and you know I've never been able to beat Burah in a fight."

"You'll have to figure it out," Neville replied. "For one thing, this is a bit different from Burah's stoneskin, in that this armor has chinks. Try hitting them in their weaknesses."

"Their weaknesses… got it. I'm good at that." Utkarsh watched carefully as two of the monsters dove towards him, dodging out of the way as they got too close.

"Remember, I'm not trained to work without magic." Neville narrowly avoided getting attacked. "You need to protect me as well."

"Right…" Utkarsh leaped up as the monsters dove in for a second attack, grabbing one of them by a chink in its armor and swinging around, throwing it off course. Then he leaped over to another one, and another, hopping closer and closer to their leader.

* * *

Emma screamed in pain, shaking her head from side to side.

"Pull yourself together, Emma!" Henri commanded. "What the hell is happening to you?"

Emma stopped the side-to-side motion, and just sat there shaking for a moment. Then she looked at Henri. Her eyes were now not only the same magenta hue of the monsters' eyes, but they were glowing just like them.

"Emma… what are you…?"

An iron blade slammed into the surface of the sphere next to Henri, startling her.

"Emma! What's gotten into you?!" Henri jumped back as another iron blade stopped inches from her face.

Emma stood there, shaking. "S-Sorry…" The blade moved slowly closer. "I-I ate a fragment. I-I d-didn't know I'd get possessed."

"You can still talk, though," Henri observed. "That means you can still resist."

Emma nodded. "Actually, I can do one better."

"Huh?"

Emma grinned. "These flying monsters are connected by a telepathic link." She swung her blades upward to deflect a pair of smaller monsters. "If I can connect to that, I may be able to control them."

"Don't lose yourself trying."

Emma stood up, turned around and stared directly up at the swarm of monsters.

* * *

Merlin watched with surprise. "Onei-chan…"

* * *

"Interesting…" Torden pondered. "I wonder if she can do it."

"I don't know Emma too well," Akane replied, "but considering she constantly fights someone else with a lot of resilience, I'd say she can do it."

* * *

Utkarsh leaped toward the next monster, but ended up sailing past it as it froze all of a sudden. He tumbled back to the surface of the sphere, then got up, groaning in pain and looking up. His eyes widened at what he saw.

Every single one of the monsters had frozen in place.

"What is this?" Utkarsh wondered.

"I don't know," Neville admitted. "I don't think this was meant to be a part of the contest."

"Are you saying a contestant did this?"

Neville shrugged. "I honestly don't know."

* * *

Gildarts looked around the monsters as they hovered above them, frozen in place.

"I will admit that I was not expecting this," Erza noted.

"Yeah," Gildarts agreed. "Something peculiar is going on."

* * *

Emma stood there, frozen, while the monsters copied her by also freezing. "Don't… you dare… attack… my guildmate…!"

Henri's eyes widened. "You're doing it!"

"I'm not done yet!" Emma slowly started to move, struggling to get the monsters to stay frozen. She raised a hand. "I can see… all… of your minds… including… your leader…" She paused to catch her breath. "You can create… an exit portal… right? And you don't… have to die…"

 _Interesting idea._

Emma's eyes widened in surprise. "You can speak?"

 _In your mind, since you have linked with me. Oh, and I will inform you that I am a single mind, not many, since I noticed you made that mistake. You see, I was not programmed to deal with outside minds getting inside, so you took me by surprise. Your will is stopping me from attacking you. Can it force me to open a portal, though?_

"Do I need to force you?" Emma inquired. "Can't you just open it willingly?"

 _Perhaps,_ the hive mind speculated. _After all, your will is slowly infiltrating my own, so it just may become my will. Besides that, I was not programmed to help you._

"I don't wish to kill you unnecessarily," Emma asserted, "even if you are just magically-generated constructs. You have your own mind, and that's enough to qualify you as living. Therefore, I'd rather you open the portal willingly."

A laugh resonated within Emma's head. _Interesting. I like your will. I think I'll copy a bit of it into my own. However, before I open this portal, I would like to make a request._

"What is it?"

 _I was designed to be a part of this game that you are playing. Once this game is over, I will have no purpose in the eyes of my creators, and they will make me disappear._

"Let me guess: you don't want to disappear."

 _Yes. I wish to continue existing, along with this dimension. I want you to promise me that you will save us. Can you do that?_

Emma nodded. "I'll see what I can do."

If it was possible to smile via telepathy, this was definitely it. Eight monsters out of the swarm formed a circle, and glowing magenta lines formed between them, in the form of an octagon and an octagram. The center of the octagram lit up to form a solid glow that slowly turned into a view of the arena. _This is your way out. Go on with your friend. And don't forget your promise._

"What about the others?"

 _They will continue to fight other parts of me, as they still must be ranked in this game. But do not worry. I will be sure not to kill them._

Emma nodded, then bent down and picked up Henri. "Let's go."

 _Before you go, a gift in advance for this deal._ Suddenly, a surge of information went through Emma's head, giving her a feeling for the entire dimension. She raised a hand to her now throbbing temple, and a single tear ran down her cheek as she watched the creatures and spheres flying around in their beautiful chaotic dance.

"It's beautiful…"

 _You gave me a part of your will – an aspect of what it is to be human. Now I give you a part of my will – an understanding of what I am. Now go. Fulfill your end of the bargain._

"I will." Iron pillars extended from her legs, launching herself and Henri through the portal.

 _We are now forever linked._ As Emma went through the portal, she felt a burning sensation on her forearm. She tumbled to the ground in the arena, then looked at her arm to see symbols tattooed on it, looking exactly like the magenta eyes that had appeared on all of the monsters.

"And in first place, we have Emma Redfox, who gets ten points for Dragon King!"

Henri got up, dusted herself off, and then took off her magic-sealing gloves. "Well, that was interesting." She looked up and saw that Emma's eyes had returned to their normal red color. "What exactly went on between you and them?"

"Well, for one thing, I made a deal with it."

"To stop it from disappearing, I'm guessing? I mean, that's what we heard you say on the LacrimaVision."

Emma nodded. She looked around and spotted Mato standing at the edge of the arena, then jogged over to him. "Oi, who's in charge of setting things up?"

"Er, well, Chapati himself designed this game-kabo. You'll want to speak with him-kabo."

Emma nodded. "Oi, Henri!" she called. "Can you fly me up to the commentators?"

Henri nodded and grabbed Emma, then flew up to where Chapati, Yajima and Invel sat.

"Um… yes?"

"You're the one who designed this game, are you?"

Chapati nodded.

"So I take it you're planning on getting rid of that dimension when the contest is over."

"That would be the plan. Why?"

"Don't do it!"

Chapati's eyes widened in surprise. "What?"

"The being that lives in that dimension… it's alive. If you get rid of that dimension, it will die. Please, leave it in existence. What harm would it do?"

Chapati scratched his head, thinking about this. "Well, we kind of have to clean up after the Games, so…"

"Please!" Emma begged. "Cleanup should not involve killing a living, sentient being. I'll do anything."

"What are those tattoos doing on your arm?" Yajima asked. "You didn't enter with them, and they're identical to the monsters' eyes."

"It gave them to me," Emma replied. "When I ate that fragment of diamond, we formed a telepathic link, and I got a view of its mind, it's desires, and the pure beauty of the world it lives in! Please don't destroy that."

Chapati looked at Yajima and Invel, who both nodded.

"I will sever any links to the dimension that were set up by us, but I will not destroy the dimension. To be honest, getting rid of it would be more work, and it's not really in anyone's way, being outside of normal space."

Emma sighed with relief. "Thank you…"

"There is one link, however, that we did not set up," Invel added.

"Hm?"

Invel pointed at Emma. "It is my theory that you have formed a permanent link between yourself and that dimension, and you may have gained new abilities that way. You will want to be careful with this new magic. Now, go join the rest of your team."

Emma nodded. "Okay, Henri. Let's go!" Henri lifted Emma into the air and glided down to meet Merlin and Nashi.

"Where are the others?" Emma asked.

"Akane went to sit with Torden," Merlin replied. "Hisoka and Thomas are in the infirmary tending to Will."

Emma smiled. "Why don't we go visit them?"

"Well, of course!" Merlin agreed. "You said you wanted to be in this contest so you had something epic to talk to Will about, and if that wasn't epic, I don't know what is."

"In second place, we have Elkhart Scarlet-Fernandes, giving eight points to Fairy Tail B Team!"

"Well, congrats to him. Let's go."

"In third place, with six points to Hallowguard, Utkarsh Alpine!"

They headed down the hall as Chapati continued to announce people completing the contest, going through a few twists and turns until they ended up at the infirmary. They all went in to see Hisoka, Wendy and Thomas at William's bed, with Porlyusica standing a few steps away and William sitting up."

"You're awake!" Emma beamed.

William nodded. "Thank them." She pointed out the four who had already been in the room with her.

Emma walked over, sat on the bed and hugged William, joined by Merlin. "I was so scared you were gonna die…"

"I promise you, I'm not going anywhere," William reassured. "So, how was the contest?"

"It was quite something," Merlin declared. "So they all went to this alternate dimension, right? And then Emma got possessed by a monster, but then _she_ possessed it _back_."

"Is that so?" inquired Hisoka.

Emma nodded. "And it's possible that I gained some new powers, but I'm not sure what they are." She grinned at Nashi. "Now I bet I could beat you!"

"Oh?" Nashi raised her right arm. "Have you forgotten the whole reason I even lost my arm in the first place. Just as a refresher, I will point out that I have new powers as well." She rolled up her left sleeve, revealing the Eastern Zodiac tattoos. "Besides, I'll bet you don't even know how to use those new powers."

"Then why couldn't you beat me before?"

"Don't you dare start fighting in here!" Porlyusica boomed, scaring both girls.

"Sorry!" they simultaneously apologized.

"Well, I hope I'm selected for the battle part," Nashi asserted, quickly recovering from Porlyusica's threat. "I may not have grown fully accustomed to this arm, but I think I've pretty much figured out how to use my new powers."

"I hope you end up against Gildarts, so I can watch your ass get kicked," Emma remarked.

William laughed. "Well, whatever happens, this has been fun so far, despite a few unexpected injuries."

Wendy looked at William. "You're surprisingly optimistic for your current state."

William smiled. "Well, I'm on the mend, and Mau aside, this has been fun so far."

The others smiled in agreement.

"Well, you have a point there," Hisoka admitted.

"Let's get ready to fight!" Nashi declared.

* * *

 **When I wrote this chapter, it did not turn out the way I expected at all. Hope you enjoyed!**


	33. GMG Arc - Father vs Daughter

"And now for the first pairing of the day: Sabertooth A Team's Minerva Orlando versus Lamia Scale's Marlo Akatsuki!"

The two contestants stepped out onto the battlefield.

"This will probably be over quickly," Erza predicted.

"Begin!"

Marlo rushed towards Minerva, who tried creating an explosion to knock him back. Marlo then created an airburst behind himself, counteracting Minerva's explosion, but also stunning him. He fell to his knees, breathing heavily.

"Oh!" Chapati marveled. "Marlo has created a counterexplosion to avoid being knocked back, but both shockwaves have left him winded."

Minerva walked over to Marlo, preparing for another strike, when she was suddenly thrown into the air by a surge of wind.

"Okay, I guess I may have been wrong," Erza observed. "I underestimated Marlo."

"It's understandable," Jellal replied. "Minerva is, after all, a powerful wizard."

Erza nodded. "However, I do not think Marlo is going to win."

Minerva switched places with Marlo, making it so he was the one flying through the air.

"Minerva's Territory is something to be reckoned with, though." Erza looked down at her foot.

"Does it still hurt?"

Erza shrugged. "It does, on occasion, twinge slightly. It's much better, though, after twenty-one years."

"You shouldn't have overworked it during the fight against those dragons."

"It's fine," Erza reassured.

"Would you be saying the same thing if it happened to Elkhart?"

Erza opened her mouth to argue, then closed it again as she realized his point.

"Think about that, and then tell me how perfectly fine you were."

"There's a difference. My body, my rules."

"How is that any different?"

"I'd rather injure myself than others," Erza explained, "especially my son."

"And what about me?" Jellal asked. "You may be willing to do that sort of thing, but I care about you."

Erza sighed. "I promise I'll be careful. Besides, as guild master, I'm not really going on any jobs."

Jellal sighed. "Well, I trust that you won't get yourself killed."

"And the winner is Minerva Orlando!"

The spectators cheered.

* * *

"Yo! Emma. I'd like to talk."

Emma turned to see Utkarsh standing behind her in the hallway.

Utkarsh looked down at her arm. "I take it you had something to do with all those monsters freezing?"

"What do you want?"

"I just wanted to tell you something you might want to hear," Utkarsh explained. "We kicked Mau off the team."

" _Tch_. Well, it's better than he deserves, but at least you're keeping him away from my sister."

Utkarsh nodded. "I'm really sorry about what happened."

"Is that all?"

Utkarsh nodded. "I'll be on my way now." He turned and walked off.

* * *

Nashi stepped into the infirmary. "Oi, Hisoka!"

Hisoka turned around. "What?"

"Come out and see the match. You've been in here the whole time."

"Nashi, I still need to heal William…"

"It's fine," William reassured. "You've healed pretty much all of my flesh wounds and internal organs, and you aren't exactly helpful with repairing bones. Besides, we're here to watch the Games in addition to participating."

"What about you? You're not watching the Games."

" _I_ can't walk, genius," William pointed out. "You can actually go out there."

"Okay, you have a point there…"

"I'll be fine with just Wendy."

Hisoka nodded, then stood up, groaning as he stretched. "I guess I should get some fresh air and exercise. Who knows? Maybe I'll be in the battle part."

"I doubt it," Nashi replied. "I'm the only one who hasn't been in the Games so far, and they'll be wanting to see a bit of every team member."

Hisoka nodded in understanding. "That does make sense."

"Actually, I'm pretty excited about this next match for a similar reason. You see, my brother also hasn't been in the Games yet, which means we'll probably be seeing him fight today."

"I see."

* * *

"The second match of the day: Fairy Tail B Team's Asuka Connell versus Sabertooth B Team's Hiromi Dragneel!"

"Dragneel?" Hisoka inquired. "I thought it was the Heartfilia name that carried over."

"Usually, yes," Nashi acknowledged. "Hiromi, however, decided to go by 'Dragneel', and our parents were fine with it. Although really, since he's currently being raised by Sting and Rogue, he ought to go by one of their names… well, really, it's a matter of choice. I stuck with the default of 'Heartfilia' because one, I preferred it and two, I don't feel like changing my name."

Hisoka nodded. "Yeah, that makes sense."

"Begin!"

"Raienryuu no Kouen!" An explosion engulfed the entire arena, causing a burning sensation on all of Hisoka's exposed skin.

"Right off the bat with a double dragon mode?!"

"He doesn't really have a choice," Nashi explained. "He was born with both elements, and he doesn't know how to use either one separately."

"Incredible… Asuka was probably…" his eyes widened as he saw Asuka standing there. "…wiped out…"

"Yeah, don't bet on that. Asuka's pretty powerful, too."

"Beat him, Asuka!" Romeo called. "You have a wider variety of elements!"

Asuka drew her guns. "Don't think I'll be taken down that easily!" She fired a few wind shots, knocking Hiromi off of his feet.

"That's our daughter!" Alzack shouted, hugging Bisca.

* * *

Hiromi skidded to a halt, staggering to his feet in the process. "I would say the same about myself." He charged Asuka, knocking earth shots out of the way with his charged-up arm. "Raienryuu no Tekken!" Lightning and fire ingulfed his arm as he swung at Asuka, who tried to dodge, but he managed to catch her on the shoulder, sending her staggering from the burns and electrical shock.

"Well, you're a feisty one, aren't you?" Asuka once again pointed her guns at Hiromi, this time launching high-speed water projectiles, pummeling the young wizard.

" _Tch_ …" Hiromi heated himself up, boiling away the water before it could get to him. "It's been a while since I fought you."

"I don't think anything's changed," Asuka replied. Her guns charged up with lightning.

"You are aware that I can eat lightning, right?"

"Not if it's not aimed at you." Asuka started firing, sending bolts of lightning to the ground around Hiromi and knocking up a bunch of dust.

"A smokescreen?" Hiromi looked around, trying to find an opening, when suddenly he was launched into the air by a pillar of earth.

"You're forgetting. My guns merely focus my magic. Not everything I do uses them."

Hiromi flew through the air, then tumbled to the ground.

* * *

"Okay," Nashi muttered. "I know she can beat you, but at least you can put up a better fight than this, right?"

Hiromi struggled to his feet. "Raienryuu no Houkou!" A torrent of lightning and flame engulfed Asuka, or at least, where she had been standing. The gunslinger stepped to one side with incredibly short reaction time, completely unharmed by Hiromi's blast.

"You certainly have guts to use ranged attacks against somebody who works with guns," Asuka boasted. She pointed both of her guns at Hiromi once more, this time firing wind out of one and earth out of the other. When the debris cleared, Hiromi was lying on the ground, barely able to move, let alone stand back up.

"And the winner is Asuka Connell!"

* * *

Hisoka thought for a moment. "And what if I gave you a name of my own?"

"You're still thinking about that?"

Hisoka shrugged. "There wasn't much else going through my mind, so it just kind of stuck there."

Nashi sighed. "Well, my name is Nashi, and I'm still going to call myself Nashi."

"Obviously. This is just a personal name – one that only I call you, like a nickname."

Nashi raised an eyebrow. "What is it?"

"Rika."

"Rika?"

"It's simple…" Hisoka pulled out a light pen and drew a character on the wall.

梨

"That means 'pear' and is pronounced 'nashi'. I suspect that's where your name came from, since other things pronounced 'nashi' essentially mean 'nothing' or 'nobody'." He added another character.

梨花

"When you add 'hana', which means 'flower', the two together are pronounced 'rika', which means 'pear blossom' or 'pear flower'. I personally find it to be quite a beautiful modification."

Nashi's eyes narrowed. "So I'm a flower now?"

"Uh…" Hisoka tried to think of a response.

Suddenly, Nashi burst out laughing.

"Huh?"

"Sorry, it's just… kinda funny. I don't know why. It just is!"

Hisoka shrugged. "What? You were a fruit and I made you a flower."

Nashi breathed heavily, trying to calm down. Then she collected herself. "Well, I think I can remember it, so yeah. You can call me Rika if you like."

Hisoka grinned and chuckled to himself. "I suppose it's a little funny. It was mostly a random thought."

* * *

"The third battle of the day: Dragon King's Nashi Heartfilia…"

"Be careful out there," Hisoka advised.

Nashi nodded. "I know." She raised her right hand. "Still haven't grown accustomed to this thing."

"…versus Fairy Tail A Team's Natsu Dragneel!"

"Huh?!" Everyone's eyes, except Nashi's, widened in shock.

Nashi grinned evilly. "Interesting. Very interesting!"

"Don't you dare abuse that arm," Elkhart warned. "I spent an entire week with no sleep working on it nonstop."

"Don't worry. I won't destroy it." Nashi walked out into the arena.

Elkhart slapped his forehead. "You're about to be fighting _him_ out there. You have to be super-careful."

"I'm fired up!" Nashi shouted as she approached her father.

"I would say the same thing," Natsu agreed. "I'm itching to see how you've improved while I was gone."

"This battle between father and daughter dragonslayers has been requested by many of you," Chapati announced. "Now we will all see how this plays out. Begin!"

Not even a tenth of a second was spared before Nashi and Natsu rushed towards one another head-on. "Karyuu no Tekken!" They simultaneously swung flame-engulfed fists at each other, which then collided, creating a resounding shockwave. Natsu reeled back, clutching his right hand in pain.

"Come to think of it, it may have been easier to beat you before you lost your arm. Karyuu no Yokugeki!" Natsu swung tendrils of flame at his daughter, whose left arm then burst into flame, burning away the sleeve and revealing the tattoos.

"Also, I forgot about that," Natsu admitted.

"Gate of the rabbit, grant me speed: Tù!" The green line on Nashi's arm lit up, along with one of the symbols.

"Interesting," Natsu mused. "I wonder if you can…" He exhaled suddenly as he was kicked from behind by Nashi.

* * *

Jet's eyes widened. "She's faster than I am!"

* * *

Natsu swung at Nashi. "Karyuu no…" Nashi shot out of the way, then zipped around, landing strike after strike on Natsu. Then she came to a stop hanging from the top of one of the walls in the stadium.

Nashi looked behind her at the surprised spectators. "Hey. Nice of you to come watch this on this fine day." She leaned over and gave one of the men a quick kiss on the cheek.

"Oh! That was a bold move from Nashi, flirting with the audience!" Chapati shouted.

"It was certainly strange," Invel agreed.

"Gate of the dragon, enhance my flames: Lóng!" Nashi surged forward, propelled by her now-enhanced flames, and barreled into Natsu's stomach.

"Oof!" Natsu grunted in pain. Then he ignited his fist and slammed an elbow down on Nashi, knocking her to the ground flat on her stomach.

"Karyuu no…" Nashi's feet lit up. "…Kagizume!" Using her flames as thrust, she flipped up feet-first and kicked Natsu in the face. As Natsu reeled back in surprise, Nashi continued the motion and landed on her feet.

"Clever," Natsu praised, grinning wildly. "That's my daughter for you."

"Karyuu no Tekken!" Nashi sped forward and swung her fist at Natsu, who raised a hand to grab her fist, but she missed completely. "Crap… I still haven't gotten the hang of this arm." She stumbled slightly. "Gate of the tiger, maintain my balance: Hǔ!"

* * *

Merlin's jaw dropped. "Seriously?"

"What?" Hisoka asked.

"She's holding three Eastern Zodiac gates at once. You may remember me saying that it takes a long time to master?"

"Yeah… you're right." Hisoka could barely keep his eyes on the flaming blur of speed that was Nashi. "Although she is an exceptional mage. And the man who gave her those powers did mention seeing her in a vision. Maybe she's just the right person for those powers."

Merlin continued to watch Nashi as well. "Maybe so, but it still seems to be putting a strain on her power."

* * *

"You may want to pace yourself," Natsu advised. "At this rate, you'll use up all of your magic."

"I'll be fine. And I will beat you. Karyuu no Tekken!" Nashi once again sped forward, this time using her left hand, and landed a blow on Natsu before she could react. Then she followed up with her right hand and started pummeling her dad with punches.

"Karyuu no…" Natsu welled up some magic power in his stomach. "…Houkou!" He blasted Nashi away. "It's nice seeing how you've improved." He charged forward. "However, I'm afraid I know your habits." As Nashi went up for a punch, he caught her fist in his hand, then yanked her up and flipped her over his shoulder. "Your breathing, your footsteps, the way you twitch, the pattern behind your seemingly random moves… even your heartbeat."

"Oh?" Nashi inquired. "Then this should be fun. Karyuu no Kouen!"

The entire arena was engulfed in an expanding fireball.

* * *

"Interesting," Torden commented. "I can sense the ground breaking from that one."

"I felt it even without a magical connection to the earth," Akane added. "That was pretty strong."

* * *

The flames cleared, and sure enough, there was a large crater where the arena floor had once been.

"And Nashi has completely obliterated the arena!" Chapati announced. "Please be patient while we set up the LacrimaVision…" A few moments passed, and the screens popped up around the edge of the arena. "Thank you for your patience. Please enjoy the rest of this fight."

* * *

Nashi opened her eyes, seeing a roof with a giant hole in it. Then her head cleared, and she remembered what she had just done. She slowly sat up, and saw her dad doing the same. She looked down and saw a trickle of blood going down her right arm, originating where the flesh met with the metal brace. "Crap, I tore the skin."

"You know, for a brief moment, I actually thought you were trying to burn me with those flames," Natsu confessed. "However, I know you're smarter than to pull a move like that on someone you know is immune to fire." He stood up with a grunt.

"Yeah." Nashi groaned and stood up herself. "That was actually supposed to obscure your vision so you wouldn't see me coming. I was expecting the ground to be sturdier."

Natsu nodded. "That was a clever move. You still want to keep fighting?"

"Is that even a question?" Nashi charged on him.

Natsu caught Nashi mid-charge, nearly knocking her off-balance. "It seems your Eastern Zodiac powers have worn off."

"Yeah. I think that's just what happens when I get stunned. Gate of the ox, grant me strength: Niú!" Suddenly, she felt a surge of power and threw Natsu back, sending him crashing into a pile of rubble. She looked down at her right arm, which was now bleeding a bit more heavily than before. "I might want to have Hisoka take a look at that."

Natsu got to his feet. "You know, your habits aren't the only thing I've picked up on."

"Karyuu no Tekken!"

Natsu dodged out of the way of Nashi's fist. "I've also picked up on your emotions."

"Gate of the pig, burn what falls within my sight: Zhū!" Nashi's eyes began glowing a gold color, and the rubble in front of her gained a similar glow before melting. "Gate of the rat, animate my surroundings: Shǔ!" The molten rock began forming basic quadrupedal creatures.

"Your conviction," Natsu continued as he punched one of the constructs. "It's similar to how I felt at my first Grand Magic Games. No… not just similar. It's almost exactly the same – even more so than with Hisoka yesterday."

"Damn right!" Nashi asserted. "'For their friends', if I recall correctly. Those were the first three words of your speech on the Chariots."

"You've been studying."

"And true, it may be partly that I want to surpass you, dad. However, I am also in this largely for my friends."

"Oh?"

The characters on Nashi's arm stopped glowing, and the constructs cooled and collapsed to the ground. "Hisoka said he wanted to become more powerful. He said he wanted to become stronger so that he could protect his home and his guild. He said something about a powerful enemy that he would one day face! What better way is there to become more powerful than to have friends by your side with that same conviction?! When he does these things that he was talking about, I plan to be there, fighting alongside him. That's my conviction! If Hisoka doesn't back down, neither will I!"

* * *

Hisoka watched the screen, his expression wavering. "Nashi…"

"She's right, you know," Merlin pointed out.

Emma nodded in agreement. "As much as I hate agreeing with that flame-brain, I'm going to have to here. The best way to become stronger is to have your friends fighting alongside you."

Henri smiled. "Nashi's not the only one. I plan to support you on your endeavors."

"I think that goes for all of us, if I'm reading everyone's body language correctly," Thomas chimed in.

"I think you are," Merlin agreed. "That's certainly my plan."

Hisoka smiled, his eyes watering. "Now, we can't be all one-sided about it. I'll support you guys as well."

Emma laughed. "Well, we're a team, right? And that's what a team does. We all support each other."

Hisoka nodded and turned his eyes back to the screen. "Do your best, Rika," he whispered.

* * *

Nashi leaned against a wall, breathing heavily.

"I told you that would take a lot out of you."

"Gate of the sheep, separate me from my body: Yáng!"

"Karyuu no Tekken!" Natsu slammed a flame-engulfed fist into Nashi's stomach, and was surprised when she didn't even dodge, and she crumpled to the ground, unconscious. "Uh… okay, that shouldn't have done that."

"No. I did that." Natsu whipped around to see a glowing orange aura in the shape of his daughter. "That's what the gate of the sheep does. It gives me a spectral form. There's something else it can do as well, but I haven't gotten the hang of that quite yet."

Natsu's grin returned. "Interesting. Well, then keep coming at me with that conviction of yours."

"Karyuu no Hitai!" Nashi's spectral form burst into flame, and she started attacking Natsu with basic hand-to-hand combat moves.

Natsu swung a fist at Nashi, but it just ended up passing through her. "Okay, I guess I should have expected that."

Nashi passed through Natsu, then elbowed him from behind. "I will surpass you, old man."

"I'm not old!" Natsu retorted. "I'm thirty-eight, dammit!"

"Whatever. You're my dad. I have the right to call you old."

"That's not how it works at all!"

Nashi swung a fist at Natsu. "Well, you can't touch me now, so I basically win."

Natsu grabbed Nashi's arm, catching her by surprise. "Not necessarily. There's always a way out. For example, you have to solidify your arm in order to strike. That leaves you open to my attacks." He swung Nashi around, throwing her to the ground near her body.

"In that case: gate of the snake, obscure my form: Shé!" The flames went out, and Nashi's spectral form turned invisible.

Natsu looked around frantically, trying to sense Nashi's location. Suddenly, something punched him in the arm. He swung in the direction it had come from, but Nashi had already either moved somewhere else or was making his hand pass through her again. Another blow. This time, Natsu focused only on bracing himself and discerning where it came from. He took blow after blow, when suddenly, his arm shot out and he grabbed something.

"Wha…?" Nashi began, surprised.

"A dragonslayer learns to use their other senses. You of all people should know that."

"But my spectral form is made of light!" Nashi protested.

"And yet, it was able to interact with the matter around it enough for you to move. Besides, I told you I picked up on your attack patterns." Suddenly, the sensation of Nashi's arm disappeared. "I told you, I…"

"Gate of the dragon, enhance my flames: Lóng!" Natsu turned just in time to see Nashi getting up, once again in her body, and barreling into him with incredible force as she used the flames to propel herself, sending them both slamming into a cavern wall.

Natsu grunted in pain as he tried to stand up.

Nashi engulfed her right arm in flames. "Karyuu no…!"

"Time!"

Nashi stopped in her tracks as Chapati called the thirty-minute mark. The flames went out and she once again looked at the brace on her right arm. There was now blood running down to the elbow and dripping on the floor.

"You put up quite the fight, Nashi," Natsu praised. "You even managed to tie with me."

"Thanks, dad." Nashi leaned over and hugged Natsu, who then hugged back.

* * *

Hisoka looked at Nashi's right arm in disappointment.

"Well, at least you didn't damage the prosthetic itself," Elkhart noted.

"But you tore the skin at the base," Hisoka added. He placed a hand on the tear and worked his magic.

Nashi shrugged. "Well, I hope Elkhart's not mad at me. I didn't damage it, just as I promised."

"You did, however, get blood all over it," Elkhart noted. "You can clean that off yourself."

"I've never cleaned a metal arm before!" Nashi complained.

"Well, I'm not doing it," Hisoka replied. "You brought it upon yourself by being careless. Go to Gildarts if you have questions."

"Geez, you're so mean." Nashi pouted.

Hisoka shrugged. "It's your arm. What if you have to perform maintenance and we're not here? You need to learn how to take care of that arm."

Nashi grumbled under her breath, then spoke up. "Okay, you have a point there. I'll talk to him later." She sighed. "Man, I really needed that. I'm still ticked that they neglected me most of my life. It was nice throwing some punches at one of them."

* * *

"And the fourth and final battle for the day: Crime Sorcier's Erik versus Hallowguard's Burah Nulzike!"

The two contestants walked into the arena, which had been repaired since the last battle.

"Begin!"

"Dokuryuu no Houkou!" Erik began with his breath weapon, unleashing a stream of poison. When it cleared, Burah was still standing, completely unaffected. "Some sort of resistance magic, I presume?"

"I call it stoneskin," Burah replied. "It blocks most attacks."

"Interesting," Erik commented.

Burah rushed forward, throwing a punch at Erik, but missing completely as Erik stepped out of the way.

"Now, I will say that I can hear your movement, and even your thoughts if you're close enough."

* * *

Nashi looked over at Hisoka. "How does that even work? You said you can't actually discern thoughts."

"There's a difference between me and Erik in the way our hearing works," Hisoka explained. "Hearing is part of his magic, and his magic even enables him to translate all those buzzing neurons into words, as well as hear sounds from further away than those particular sounds can even carry. I, on the other hand, simply have incredibly sensitive ears, with no magic actively manipulating what I hear." He looked out onto the battlefield. "I'm also not as good at listening to movement, though I do try, and I'm interested in training with him if he has any spare time."

* * *

"I heard that," Erik replied. "Talk to me after the fight."

"What?" Burah asked.

"Nothing," Erik replied. "Just a conversation with someone else who has sensitive ears."

* * *

"Okay," Hisoka confirmed.

"What?" Nashi asked.

"Nothing. I was talking to Erik."

Nashi sighed. "Now that could get annoying."

Hisoka shrugged. "I mean, normally I wouldn't be able to hear him through the crowd of people talking, but they're busy watching the match. I mean, there's that one guy bragging about how you kissed him."

"That was an attention-getting move towards the audience as a whole," Nashi replied. "I hope he doesn't think I have a crush on him."

Hisoka shook his head. "It doesn't sound like it. His girlfriend is laughing with him."

"Good."

* * *

"She's still worried about that?" Erik speculated. He turned back to Burah, then lunged and grabbed Burah's arm, knowing that if he went for the face, it would be blocked more easily. "Dokuryuu no Akugeki!" The maroon poison burst from his hand, and Burah rapidly withdrew his arm, assessing the damage. "I hear your thoughts. That strike did damage."

"Barely. And at point-blank range," Burah replied. "Can you keep that up?"

"Dokuryuu no Eikaku!" Erik swung a fist at Burah, landing another blow, and this time sending a bladelike directional burst of poison from his fist and jabbing Burah in the chest. He took a few steps back.

"Maybe Utkarsh would have been a better match for you," Burah muttered.

"Perhaps," agreed Erik.

"However, I can still beat you." Burah dodged Erik's next attack, then grabbed his arm. "Enhanced resistance isn't the only magic I have." He punched Erik squarely in the middle of the chest, knocking the wind out of him and sending him sprawling. "My stoneskin magic is called stoneskin because it hardens the skin, making my strikes a lot more painful." He swung a fist down, and Erik rolled out of the way just in time. However, Burah followed up with a headbutt to the side. Then Burah stumbled to his feet and picked Erik up, punching him in the face and letting him drop to the ground, stunned and unable to stand.

"And the winner is Burah Nulzike!"

Hisoka glided down and started using his healing magic on Erik, while Burah headed back to the rest of his guild.

"You wanted to learn some fighting techniques from me?" Erik inquired.

"Yeah," Hisoka confirmed. "I'm trying to get better at fighting, and I have sensitive ears already, so I figured, why not go ahead and use them?"

"Right." Erik sat up. "Well, there's a lot going on right now, with the Games and all. However, after the Games are over, I'll give you some lessons on hearing specific movements."

Hisoka nodded and smiled. "Thanks." He stood up and offered a hand to Erik. "Hey. You fought well."

Erik took it, and let Hisoka pull him to his feet. "Thanks. You know, it's impressive that he was able to move in a way that I couldn't react quickly enough."

"I know," Hisoka agreed. "I look forward to training with you." He turned back to the stadium. "I'll be returning to my friends now, and getting some rest for tomorrow."

* * *

 **You know, when I first started this arc, I was having trouble deciding whether Nashi should fight her dad or her brother. I believe that I made the right choice. Hope you enjoyed!**


	34. GMG Arc - Bloodlines and Nightmares

A display popped up on the infirmary wall.

"Nice!" Hisoka did a fist pump. "Now we can watch the contest from here."

"Thanks for setting up the LacrimaVision," William said.

"No problem," Chapati replied. "Now if you don't mind, I have a contest to cover." He exited the infirmary.

"Maybe I should have eaten breakfast," Hisoka noted. "I got up late, but I'm not planning to be in the contest anyway." He shrugged and turned back to William. "I'll grab something later."

* * *

"Welcome to the fourth day of the Grand Magic Games! I'm your emcee, Chapati Rola, accompanied by 8-island restaurant owner Yajima-san, and today, as our guest speaker, we are joined by none other than Queen Hisui E. Fiore."

A thunderous cheer rose from the crowd.

"Now for the rankings so far: in eighth place, having been quite unfortunate this year compared to other years, we have Lamia Scale with three points. In seventh place, with eleven points: Crime Sorcier. In sixth place, we have Sabertooth B Team with twenty-six points. In fifth place, with thirty-two points: Fairy Tail A Team. Tied in third place with thirty-four points each are Dragon King and Sabertooth A Team. In second place: Fairy Tail B Team with thirty-seven points. And in first place, with forty-five points: Hallowguard! And the contest of the day is called: Nightmare."

* * *

"Nightmare, huh?" Emma speculated. "I'd say I'm a nightmare myself. I'll do this."

Nashi rolled her eyes. "You? A nightmare?"

"No," Akane argued. "You were just in yesterday's contest, and up until now, I haven't participated in the Games. I'll do it."

Emma thought about this for a moment, then shrugged. "Fair enough. But I'd like to be in the tag team battles today."

Akane nodded. "I'm not going to stop you." He headed out into the arena.

"From Dragon King, we have Akane Skofnung!"

* * *

Gildarts stood up. "I think this may be better suited for me than yesterday."

"From Fairy Tail A Team: Gildarts Clive!"

* * *

"I've dealt with my fair share of nightmares," Macbeth noted. "And in some cases, I can be a nightmare myself. I will do this one."

"From Crime Sorcier: Macbeth!"

* * *

Hisoka, Wendy and William watched as more contestants stepped out into the arena.

"From Sabertooth A Team: Dobengal! From Sabertooth B Team: Hiromi Dragneel! From Hallowguard, we have Ulsu Sakrav! From Lamia Scale: Wally Buchanan! And from Fairy Tail B Team, we have Romeo Conbolt!"

"I wonder what this is going to be," Hisoka speculated.

"Now for an explanation of the contest: like yesterday's competition, the contestants will be sent to a pocket dimension. However, they will be in a dreamlike state but still active, and the dimension will be procedurally generated by their subconscious minds. They are essentially living a dream, and it is possible to become lucid. If you die in here, you will find yourself unharmed in the arena. The goal? Escape without dying. Begin!"

The contestants dematerialized, and the arena on the screen was replaced by a snowy landscape.

* * *

Akane looked around. "This place…" His mind was clouded by the lack of consciousness, but he recognized the setting nonetheless.

"Maybe this wasn't the best idea…" Macbeth looked around in horror at the monsters advancing on him.

The LacrimaVision switched between the various situations for the contestants. Then it fell back on Akane.

"I know that place," William whispered, her voice filling with dread. "Akane's dreaming about the day I got crushed."

Hisoka's eyes widened with fear. "He's repeatedly made it clear that that's the worst memory of his life." He turned to William. "Not only that, but he tried to kill Mau. I saw the look in his eyes. If he becomes lucid… no, even if he remains unconscious…" He bolted out of the infirmary. "We have a problem."

* * *

Romeo looked in horror at the gunshot wound in his heart, then up at Asuka with the smoking gun. "This is the dumbest nightmare ever…" His view faded and was replaced by the arena. He looked over and saw Hisoka running over. "Hisoka, what are you doing out here?"

"Akane's in trouble." Hisoka looked at the LacrimaVision display.

* * *

Akane looked around frantically, hearing the sound of a dragon roaring and his friends screaming. His eyes fell on the frost dragon, which was now picking up a stunned William.

"Will…!"

The dragon looked Akane directly in the eye, then tightened his grip on William with the sickening crunch that had remained in his memory all these months. He tried to move, but realized he was frozen in place as the dragon dropped William to the ground and then brought down its claws, impaling the girl with three of them. Akane screamed in rage and suddenly was able to run over to where William lay. His eyes widened in horror as he realized that this time, the dragon had succeeded in killing his friend. He looked up, then sprouted his wings and shot directly into the dragon's chest while engulfing his body in crimson energy. Suddenly, his view of his surroundings shattered and was replaced by the arena. He looked around, then spotted Mato.

Hisoka looked over at where Akane had appeared, with the other contestants also falling out of the hole he had punched in reality. Hisoka stared in shock at Akane's wings, which, instead of the normal batlike dragon wings he normally had closely resembled those of Acnologia, with the only difference being that the markings were red instead of blue.

"Shinkuryuuken!" A large crimson blade grew out of Akane's arm as he headed for the referee, who had frozen in fear.

"Akane, no!" Hisoka sprinted towards Akane.

There was a wet crunch as the blade ran through both flesh and bone.

Nashi stared in horror for a split second, then dashed out into the arena, followed by the rest of Dragon King, as well as Elkhart.

Akane's consciousness slowly returned to him, and he looked over Hisoka's shoulder at the crimson blade that was now sticking out of Hisoka's backside, a bit to the left of his spine.

"Akane…" Hisoka spluttered through a mouthful of blood, "…your… wings…"

Akane turned his head and realized what Hisoka was trying to say. He looked back at his best friend, and the blade running through Hisoka dematerialized. The river dragonslayer fell back, hitting the ground with a thud.

Nashi dashed over and knelt next to Hisoka. "Hisoka, are you alright?! Hang in there, Hisoka!" Fear rose in her voice, and tears streamed down her face. "Hisoka!"

"Move aside!" Thomas hovered above Hisoka, taking a few seconds to examine the stab wound, then turned back to Nashi. "Get over here!" He pulled on a small, floppy, disc-shaped organ that was missing a chunk, pulling out slightly. "I need you to cauterize this. Quickly! I estimate he only has three minutes before he bleeds to death. This is the spleen. It's bleeding the heaviest."

Nashi nodded and heated up her right index finger until it glowed a faint red. She looked Hisoka in the eye. "Hisoka, if you're still conscious, I'd like to warn you that this is going to hurt. Don't you dare try to make a sound!" She placed her red-hot finger on the bit of the spleen that was bleeding, feeling awful as she watched his face twist in pain.

Thomas pushed the cauterized spleen back into place, then pulled out two ends of intestine. "Now cauterize this back together, to prevent infection."

Henri walked over to where Hisoka's head was. "You're going to be okay." Her eyes watered, and the fur around them started to get soaked.

Nashi stuck the two parts of the large intestine back together, then ran the red-hot finger around it, sticking it back together.

Elkhart moved a hand under Hisoka, blocking off the exit wound. "Dammit, Hisoka. You'll never get to all that stuff you were talking about if you die here!"

"Alright. He has more time now, but he's still in trouble." Thomas held the two halves of the stomach together. "Nashi, I can't pull the stomach out, but try to get it without damaging the stuff around it. Elkhart, whatever you do, don't remove that hand."

Henri continued to speak to Hisoka gently to deal with the shock, while Nashi ran her red-hot finger along where the two halves of Hisoka's stomach were pinched together.

Just then, a pair of men from the Council came in with a stretcher and set it down next to Hisoka. Elkhart, Nashi, Emma and Merlin carefully slid him on, while Akane stood there, staring at his blood-covered hand in horror.

"It seems this contest has taken an unexpected turn," Chapati announced. "One of the participants, while not even in the contest, has been badly injured by his own teammate."

* * *

Porlyusica took a dropper, and dripped a bit of strange fluid on the wound.

"What is that?" asked Nashi, concern rising in her voice.

"Antibiotic fluid," Porlyusica explained. "You said the large intestine was severed, so any bacteria that got out into his body would need to be dealt with." She put on a pair of rubber gloves and examined other parts of the wound. "Other than the organs you were able to cauterize, the pancreas lost a big chunk, and the left kidney's beyond recovery. And the blade barely missed his heart. Plus, the diaphragm and left lung have been slashed, with the lung collapsing, and the blade cut clean through five ribs."

"A good portion of that didn't make sense to me," Nashi admitted, "but it sounds bad."

"It is," Porlyusica agreed. "Especially the collapsed lung."

"I can't use healing magic on this, of all things," Wendy muttered.

"It's not your fault. It's mine." Akane sat in the corner, looking down at his bloody hand.

"It's nobody's fault," William argued. She climbed out of her bed and crawled over to Akane. "You saw me die, and you weren't fully awake. I know you would never do something like that intentionally."

"Would I not?!" Akane snapped. "In my dream state, I was actually convinced you were dead, and I was going to kill the referee for it. I nearly killed him, and I just may have ended up killing my best friend, all because I saw you die!"

William wrapped her arms around Akane. "I'm here. I'm alive, and you can see it plain as day. Anyone experiencing a reliving of events like that would have reacted the same way you did. I know you, and you're no murderer."

"You don't know me," Akane argued, pulling away. "Not everything, anyway. You wouldn't be saying those things if you knew who my father was."

"Yes, I would," William argued. "You are not your father. You're you."

Tears formed in Akane's eyes. "You're sure about that? I just did something really shitty that resembles what he did."

William nodded. "Even if your father was Zeref or Acnologia, you are not them."

"Yeah, about that…" Akane began.

"It is Acnologia, isn't it?" William queried. "I saw your wings, and I've seen pictures of Acnologia."

Akane's eyes widened.

"It doesn't matter," William repeated. "You are your own person, and I still feel safe around you. You are still our friend."

"Merlin," Porlyusica called. "Over here, please."

Merlin walked over, while Porlyusica stuck her hands in the wound, messing with Hisoka's ribs. "Go wash your hands very thoroughly, and then reach in here and bolt his ribs back together. And use nickel. Any other metal I've seen you use would be dangerous."

Merlin nodded, washing his hands at a nearby sink, then headed over to Hisoka, running his fingers along the ribs and bolting three braces across each crack, trying not to puke at the wound as a whole.

"Remember, it went all the way through," Porlyusica reminded, "so do the backside as well."

Merlin nodded and carefully tilted Hisoka up to reveal the exit wound. He felt his stomach convulsing, then quickly turned his head away and threw up on the floor. He was about to wipe his mouth when he suddenly remembered that he was sticking his hands inside Hisoka's wound, where he didn't want to be mixing in his own bacteria. Luckily, only three ribs were broken in the back, and Merlin was able to bolt them together.

"Now, clean that up while I stitch up everything else." Porlyusica indicated the puddle of vomit on the floor. "Also, I will say that you are clearly not cut out to be a doctor."

"I noticed." Merlin got some towels and began wiping up the vomit.

Porlyusica stitched the lung shut, then the diaphragm, followed by the small intestine. Finally, she placed some gauze over the entry and exit wounds, and wrapped some bandages around it all.

"He'll be okay, right?" asked Nashi.

"He's not going to die," Porlyusica reassured. "However, it was very close – on the same level as what Mau did to William. He will be able to walk again, and even fight to an extent, but I'm afraid he will not fully recover. His breathing is permanently impaired."

Tears ran down Nashi's face. "Well…" she sniffed, "…he's not dead, at least…"

"I'm sorry…" Akane began.

Nashi put up a hand to stop him and shook her head. "It's not your fault," she choked. "You weren't yourself, and he's the one who jumped into the path of your blade."

Akane sat there for a moment, then returned William's embrace. "Thank you for trusting me."

"She's not the only one," Emma added. "It doesn't matter who your parents are. You're a Fairy Tail wizard."

Nashi nodded. "Did you know that the black wizard Zeref was my uncle?"

"No, I didn't know that…"

"The point is, you don't have to worry about your bloodline," Nashi interrupted. "The only person that matters in whether we trust you is yourself."

"Plus, my dad did some pretty awful things while he wasn't himself," Elkhart added. "And he was forgiven. If you're really feeling bad about what you did, go talk to him about it."

Hisoka's eyes opened, which Porlyusica noticed immediately. "Don't try to talk," she warned. "Your left lung collapsed, and I still need to work on it."

"If you have anything to say, send it to me telepathically," Elkhart offered. "I'll relay it to the others."

 _Sorry, guys,_ Hisoka apologized. _I don't know what I was thinking. Who's in the room here? I would check myself, but I'm guessing I shouldn't be turning my head._

"You're right about that," Porlyusica agreed. "There's me and William, obviously, as well as Wendy and the rest of Dragon King."

 _Right,_ Hisoka acknowledged. _Akane, it wasn't your fault. Please don't stress about it._

"Easy for you to say."

 _Funny that you're saying that, when I'm the one who nearly died. Look, as the person you accidentally stabbed, I am asking you to please not beat yourself up over it. If I can't get that message through to you, I don't know who can._

Akane sighed. "Right…" He started trembling. "My wings were different, though… What if that means I'm becoming more like him? What if I become the next dragon of the apocalypse?"

 _Don't you dare say that!_ Hisoka snapped. The others could see his hand forming a loose fist. _Acnologia became what he became because everyone he loved died. And even he was able to redeem himself. Plus, we're not going anywhere. Got it?_

Akane nodded. "Right…"

"If you really value your friends, protect them," William advised. "You've been doing it, so keep doing it."

"Anyway," Elkhart interrupted, "I found out what the pairings are for the tag team battles. The first match is Sabertooth B Team versus Lamia Scale, then Sabertooth A Team versus Crime Sorcier, then Dragon King versus Fairy Tail B Team, and finally, Fairy Tail A Team versus Hallowguard."

"I'm most certainly not doing this," Akane decided. "I nearly killed my best friend. I certainly don't need to be going back out there any time soon."

"Yeah," Merlin agreed. "It may not have been your fault, but things need to cool down with the audience as well. Oh, and I think I'll be staying in here with Will."

 _I obviously can't be in this,_ Hisoka added. _I don't think I can even be in the final battle._

Nashi nodded in acknowledgement. "I suppose that just leaves me and…" Her eyes widened as she realized the end of that thought, and she turned her head slowly towards Emma.

Emma shook her head. "No! Absolutely not. Merlin, please don't do this. It's a really bad idea."

"I don't see the problem," Merlin innocently replied.

"There's no way I'm working with Emma!" Nashi snapped. "In what way is that at all a good idea?"

 _Well, it's a good way for you to both develop,_ Hisoka pointed out.

"Hisoka's right," Elkhart agreed. "Part of being a powerful wizard is being able to get along with people who get on your nerves. Work with someone you hate with a burning passion, and you can adapt to any situation."

Emma eyed Elkhart suspiciously. "Are you just saying that because you know it won't end well?"

 _No,_ Hisoka replied. _He's actually trying to give good advice. Akane, what do you think?_

"I think it would be interesting," Akane confirmed. "In fact, if you two can learn to work together, flames and metal make an excellent combo."

"And you won't tell anyone on your team, will you?" asked Nashi.

Elkhart shook his head. "We've already decided whom we're sending out there. I will assure you that I'm not one of them."

* * *

"And now for our first match: Sabertooth B Team versus Lamia Scale! It seems that Sabertooth B Team has chosen Eallesander and Hiromi Dragneel, while Lamia Scale has gone with their classic combo of Lyon Vastia and Yuka Suzuki."

"You ready for this, Hiromi?"

Hiromi nodded. "I hope so."

"Have you been able to unlock anything?"

"I'm telling you, Ealles. I'm not a demon."

Eallesander sighed. "Look, I know you were born to two human parents. However, I know a demon when I sense one, and a demon can be born to humans, especially if one of those humans was previously a demon."

"Yeah, but I've never been able to do anything other than dragonslayer magic. And why is my sister still human?"

"Because that's how things turned out with her. Besides, with everything Lucy did with E.N.D.'s book to keep Natsu alive, there would have had to have been side effects, such as demonic DNA."

Hiromi sighed. "Look, even if I have demonic blood, as far as my powers are concerned, I'm human."

Eallesander laughed. "Well, I wouldn't call a persistent double dragon mode human, but whatever. It works for this fight." The two of them turned to face Lyon and Yuka.

"Begin!" Chapati commanded.

Yuka instantly rolled to one side, being lucky enough to predict Eallesander's first attack.

Hiromi turned his head towards Yuka, power welling up in his stomach. "Raienryuu no Houkou!" The torrent of electrified flames surged towards Yuka, who reacted quickly by throwing up an anti-magic sphere. Unfortunately, the lightning seemed to still be getting through slightly.

"Ice Eagle!" Lyon created a flock of eagles with his ice and sent them towards Hiromi. Some of them were melted by Eallesander, while others hit Hiromi, breaking his focus.

"I see…" Yuka muttered to himself.

Eallesander charged towards Yuka, the air around their hand liquefying. Suddenly, however, it all boiled off, and Eallesander grabbed Yuka, expecting his arm to freeze, but nothing happened. Hiromi dropped to his knees suddenly, hands over his ears.

* * *

"Natsu, Gajeel, what's wrong?" Lucy asked. She looked over at Nashi and Emma, who also had their hands over their ears.

"What the hell is that noise?" Natsu asked.

"What noise?" Levy inquired.

* * *

"Dragons, and even dragonslayers can hear a much wider range of frequencies than normal humans," Elkhart explained, looking over at Laxus, who was also covering his ears. He then glanced over at the exceeds, who were doing the same thing. "Even exceeds can hear it."

Torden desperately tried to keep his balance on the head of the statue while also covering his earholes. "You know, Yuka, you could be a bit nicer to the audience."

"16.7 megahertz," Yuka explained. "That is the resonant frequency of magic. However, I have learned a few more frequencies over the years, such as in the battle against Tartaros. Bring it down nine octaves, and you get 32.7 kilohertz, the resonant frequency of curse. Unfortunately, it's within the hearing range of dragons and dragonslayers, so it may be a bit uncomfortable for your friend there."

Eallesander looked over at Hiromi, who was curled up on the ground, with Lyon advancing on him. "Dammit! Pull yourself together, Hiromi. It's just noise. I can hear it, too, you know." They turned back to Yuka. "How did you know?"

Yuka shrugged. "Lucky guess. I won't bother asking how you're still alive, but curse is pretty much the only thing that can resemble magic so closely, and while I'm not detecting any magic coming directly from you, I am sensing traces of Zeref's magic." Suddenly, he twisted out of Eallesander's grasp and kicked them in the stomach, sending them sprawling.

Hiromi painfully looked up at his guildmate. Even with his hands covering his ears, the noise was still agonizing. "Ealles!" He started to stand up, but had the wind knocked out of him as he was body-slammed by Lyon's ice gorilla. He lay there, trying to catch his breath.

"Sorry," Yuka apologized, "but magic works fine at this frequency. Also, due to the lower frequency, I can expend the same amount of magic with a much greater range. The entire arena is within my wave."

Hiromi trembled. "Dammit, I'm probably going to get permanent hearing damage from this…" He slowly removed his hands from his ears, wincing as the high-pitched ringing of Yuka's anti-curse bubble became much louder. He stood up and looked over at Lyon's ice gorilla, which was now charging towards him. "Raienryuu no Tekken!" The creation shattered as he struck it. Then he headed for Yuka.

"Ice Wall!" Lyon threw up a barrier in the nick of time, causing Hiromi to run face-first into it.

"Nice…" Eallesander grunted, slowly standing up. "I knew you'd pull through…"

"That still hurt, though," Hiromi complained, rubbing his nose.

Eallesander chuckled. "Well, anyway, this is nice. I always enjoy a good challenge."

* * *

 **My apologies for leaving off in the middle of a fight. I always enjoy a cliffhanger. Also, when I started writing this arc, I will have you know that I did not see coming what happened to Hisoka (though I poured more research into the medical implications of that stab wound than I've ever poured into a single element of a story). Anyway, hope you enjoyed!**


	35. GMG Arc - Hybrid Power

Hiromi gave a _tsk_ of annoyance as he realized his magic was slightly weakened by Yuka's wave. He was pretty sure he only used magic, though he had noticed some of his magic getting through the anti-magic wave.

"I thought you only used magic."

"So did I," Hiromi replied to Yuka. "I'm not entirely certain what's going on here." He took an offensive stance. "However, it won't deter me." His ears were now burning with pain from the anti-curse wave. "Raienryuu no Kenkaku!" He burst through Lyon's ice wall, his body engulfed in electrified flame. "Raienryuu no Kagizume!" He attempted an element-assisted kick to Lyon, who caught his foot in ice. He looked desperately at Eallesander, who continued to be beaten up by Yuka.

"You're out of your league," Lyon boasted as he tossed Hiromi to one side.

"I wouldn't bet on that," Hiromi retorted, breathing heavily. "My magic can get partially through Yuka's anti-magic waves, and is nearly unaffected by anti-curse."

"It is indeed an interesting challenge," Lyon admitted. "Your power seems to have aspects of both. However, I do not believe it's enough to take on the two of us."

"I don't have to," Hiromi replied. "Eallesander has Yuka preoccupied, leaving only you."

"For how long?" Lyon inquired. "Eallesander does not appear to be used to hand-to-hand combat, while Yuka's magic requires him to learn such a skill. Furthermore, we're nearly four times your age and have far more experience than you. Icemake: Snow Tiger!" He put his hands together and created a tiger out of ice, which then lunged at Hiromi.

"Raienryuu no Houkou!" Hiromi once again unleashed his breath weapon, blasting the tiger to pieces and engulfing Lyon in electrified flames. Lyon tried throwing up an ice shield against the flames, but it was shattered by the added lightning.

"Lyon and Eallesander are both down!" Chapati announced. "That leaves only Yuka and Hiromi. They have twenty minutes to settle this before time runs out."

Hiromi ran over to where Eallesander lay on the ground, defeated. "Oi, Ealles, talk to me! Are you alright?"

"Sorry, Hiromi," Eallesander apologized. "I can't move at the moment. The rest is up to you."

Hiromi nodded in understanding, then stood up to face Yuka, who dispelled his anti-curse wave and put up his anti-magic wave.

"This seems to be a bit more effective against you," Yuka deduced.

Hiromi charged into Yuka's wave, his ears still ringing from the anti-curse wave. "I believe Lyon may be right, though." He tried lighting up his hand, but most of the flames were dispelled, leaving mainly lightning. "My power isn't quite magic, and it isn't quite curse. It's something else. Raienryuu no Tekken!" He engulfed his entire arm in electrified flames.

Yuka tried blocking the punch with his hand, but was still thrown back by the force of it, as well as stunned by the lightning. He skidded across the ground, his anti-magic wave dispelled.

Hiromi walked up to Yuka and raised his right hand, engulfing it in electrified flames. Then he did the same with his left hand. "Raienryuu no…" He brought his hands together. "…Kouen!" A brilliant explosion engulfed him and his opponent, sending Yuka flying through the air and then landing on the ground, defeated.

"And the winner of the first tag team battle is Sabertooth B Team!"

The crowd cheered as Hiromi raised a victorious fist. Then he stumbled and fell to the ground, quickly falling asleep.

* * *

Natsu smiled. "It seems both our kids have grown over the years."

Lucy nodded in agreement. "It's good to be back." She looked out at the arena. "It seems Hiromi's overexerted himself again, though."

Natsu shrugged. "Well, it's what happens when you use two elements, and he doesn't know how to use either one separately."

"He'll be fine," Nashi reassured them. "This happens all the time when he's on jobs."

* * *

"Now for the second match of the day: Sabertooth A Team versus Crime Sorcier. It seems that Sabertooth A Team has chosen Rogue Cheney and Yukino Agria, while Crime Sorcier has chosen Erik and Macbeth. Begin!"

Nashi peeked in through the door, then spotted Hisoka sitting up and walked over. "How is it?"

"Better," Hisoka wheezed. "I'm allowed to talk now, since my lung's been re-inflated."

Nashi looked over at Akane, who had fallen asleep in the corner with William.

"Not only that," Hisoka added. "My healing factor may not be able to help with the wound itself, but I've regained most of the blood that I lost. What did you think of your brother's performance?"

"It was interesting," Nashi replied. "Although I had to cover my ears for most of it."

Hisoka nodded. "I was able to faintly detect that noise even from here." He looked at the LacrimaVision. "Now that's interesting."

Nashi glanced over at the screen. "Which one?" She could see that the fight was split between Yukino versus Macbeth and Rogue versus Erik.

"Rogue versus Erik," Hisoka replied. "Neither of them are landing any hits on each other, because Erik's incredibly agile and Rogue keeps turning into shadows."

Nashi shrugged. "I'm not sure what the appeal is, but sure."

"It's my kind of fight," Hisoka replied. "I prioritize not taking hits in the first place over being able to take them."

"You know, there's a flaw in that," Nashi pointed out. "I personally find it better to take hits head-on. I mean, some you have to evade them, but evading blows is like evading your problems. It will temporarily keep you safe, but you'll never solve them."

Hisoka shook his head. "That's not it at all. You can dodge around the hard bits of a problem, then get up close and solve it. Basically, if you want to dodge all of your opponent's attacks, you'll want to hit them hard and fast in return."

"And what if you can't dodge it? What if it's omnidirectional, or you have to take it to protect someone?" She waved a hand at the bandages around Hisoka's upper torso.

Hisoka's eyes narrowed. "Don't bring that up."

"Why not?" Nashi demanded, raising an eyebrow. "Sure. You survived that. But what about next time? And this doesn't just apply to fights and blows. I worry about you, Hisoka."

"I know," Hisoka apologized. "Because that's what friends do. That's how we survive."

Nashi nodded. "Oh, and I'm the one who prevented you from bleeding to death or getting an infection. You owe me one."

Hisoka pondered for a moment. "Actually, now we're even."

Nashi raised an eyebrow. "How so?"

"Well, there was the first time we met, when I healed you after hitting the street really hard. Then there was that time I broke up that fight with you and your Edolas version. And finally, when I went after you after you got captured by the Baildagch. As for you, you convinced Flutlogia to return to his dormant state when his power was killing me, as well as when you had my back fighting the Baildagch prince. Finally, you saved my life just a few hours ago."

"Are we really going to count past instances?"

Hisoka shrugged, then grimaced in pain and placed a hand on the location of the entry wound. "Okay, I shouldn't be using those muscles. Anyway, yeah. Isn't that the sort of thing what you meant by me 'owing you one'? There should be some sort of system for that."

Nashi sighed. "Alright, fine. However, I'm not any more or less likely to save your life again just because of what we technically 'owe' each other."

Hisoka nodded in understanding. "Likewise."

"However, I will be keeping track."

"So will I. I bet I'll save your life more."

Nashi grinned eagerly. "You're on!"

"And time!"

The two looked over at the screen. Erik and Yukino had been defeated, while Rogue and Macbeth were still standing, breathing heavily.

Hisoka looked back at Nashi. "I guess after the break, you and Emma are up."

Nashi nodded. "I still disapprove."

"So does Emma. Merlin left to go talk to her just a few minutes ago."

"Well, at least that's one thing we can agree on. This suuuucks!"

"Don't be like that," Hisoka scolded. "You'll do great."

Nashi pouted. "Whatever. That doesn't mean I'll like it." She turned and headed out. "I'm going to go take a shower. I was told this arm would be fine with water, and I could really use one."

* * *

Jonah looked up in a response to a knock on his door. He closed his book, then got up from his bed, walked over and opened it to see Elkhart standing there with some royal guards. He looked between the two guards. "Leave us. He can be trusted."

The guards exchanged glances.

"Excuse me, Jonah-sama, but we're under orders from your mother not to leave us."

"And this is personal. Besides, if he wanted to, Elkhart could take both of you out before you could make a sound. On top of that, he's a good friend of mine. Leave us. That's an order."

Elkhart watched as the guards turned and left, then turned back to Jonah. "How did you know it was personal?"

Jonah shrugged. "I just happen to be fairly insightful."

Elkhart smiled. "And that's one of the things that will make you an excellent king."

Jonah nodded. "So what is this personal matter that you came to me for?"

"You sure you don't know?"

Jonah sighed. "I can pick up on basic feelings, not read minds."

"Ah. So sort of like Hisoka."

Jonah shrugged. "I guess, though I'm not sure how it works with him."

"His ears are sensitive enough to detect neural activity," Elkhart explained. "He can pick up on basic feelings and intent."

Jonah nodded. "Well, yeah. It's basically like that, except with faces. Anyway, what were you here for?"

Elkhart opened his mouth to speak, but no sound came out.

"Take your time," Jonah reassured. "If it makes you that nervous, don't rush it."

Elkhart took a deep breath, then exhaled. "I'd like some advice on coming out."

Jonah grinned. "So you finally figured it out?"

Elkhart nodded. "And I got my old magic back in the process. It's kind of a weird story, actually. I found myself using my old magic to protect a friend, and then everything just clicked into place in my head. In that moment, I stopped caring about anything except for protecting my friends, and whatever emotions were blocking my magic just disappeared. And upon no longer caring about things like being normal, I was able to process other things, such as my identity."

"Friendship is key to so many things," Jonah pointed out.

"It would seem so," Elkhart agreed. "Anyway, I plan on coming out at the Post-Games Ball. Any advice?"

Jonah raised an eyebrow. "You mean like, to everyone at once?"

Elkhart shrugged. "Everyone who sees me, anyway."

"Yeah, you probably don't want to do that," Jonah advised. "Coming out to everyone at once is not a terribly good idea. I mean, my mom's cool with it, and she's the one hosting the ball, but it would still be better to come out step by step. Like, come out to a close friend first. Then you can move on to your other friends. You'll want some backing from them, you see. Like, at first, I only came out to Hiromi. Then I moved on to Carli and a couple of the royal guards. I was a bit hesitant about my mom, considering how long it took her to enact laws protecting people like us, but she was pleasantly supportive. Of course, there are some people who will be fully comfortable with just expressing themselves without a coming out process. However, you seem pretty nervous, and you should definitely pace yourself in a comfortable way."

Elkhart nodded in understanding. "Friendship is key to so many things, yeah?"

"That's the idea, yes."

Elkhart glanced over at the clock on the wall. "Well, I was planning to watch this next match, so I guess I should be going now. Thanks for the advice, though."

Jonah smiled. "Anytime."

* * *

Nashi walked into the infirmary and looked around. Her eyes fell asleep on Akane and William. "Still asleep, are they?"

"Indeed," Hisoka confirmed. "They seem really comfortable. Is that what you were here for?"

"No. I just wanted to check in on you. How's the injury?"

"Much better, actually," Hisoka replied. "I mean, my internal organs are permanently damaged, but I've regenerated most of the lost blood, so I should be able to walk back to the hotel tonight."

"I think I'll walk with you, just to make sure."

Hisoka nodded. "Anyway, is that all?"

Nashi shrugged. "I don't really have anything else to discuss. Plus, I have a match to win." She looked around. "I see Merlin's also fallen asleep. Where are Thomas and Porlyusica?"

"On a supply run," Hisoka replied.

Nashi nodded, then turned to leave.

"Do your best, Rika."

Nashi stopped, and turned back to see Hisoka smiling at her and making the backwards L sign with his thumb and forefinger. She smiled back and repeated the gesture, then turned and headed out.

* * *

"Now for the third match of the day: Dragon King versus Fairy Tail B Team! It would appear that Dragon King has chosen Nashi Heartfilia and Emma Redfox, while Fairy Tail B Team has gone with Romeo Conbolt and Asuka Connell."

Nashi's eyes widened. "This was a bad idea."

"I knew I should have made Merlin do it," Emma seethed. "Those two are a really strong team."

"Begin!"

Asuka drew her guns with blinding speed, and immediately shot flames at Emma.

"Tetsryuu no Uroko!" Emma quickly covered herself in iron scales.

"Yeah, she does that with me all the time." Nashi held up her left arm. "Gate of the rabbit, grant me speed: Tù!" She rushed towards Romeo as everything slowed down around her, but was caught off guard as Romeo grabbed her by the right arm, flipping her over. She let out a yelp as she felt the now-familiar pain in her shoulder, then hit the ground flat on her back, the wind knocked out of her.

"You'll have to do better than that," Romeo advised.

Asuka pointed her guns at Nashi, this time releasing powerful gusts of wind. However, Nashi had barely even felt it when an iron pillar knocked Asuka off balance and threw her aim off.

Romeo began to shoot fire at Emma.

"Karyuu no Kagizume!" Nashi pulled the same move as yesterday, using her flames as thrust, then flipping up to kick Romeo in the side of the head. She once again yelped in pain as her right arm swung around, out of her control.

"You dislocated it again, didn't you?" Emma inquired.

"It's seven times as heavy as my old arm," Nashi complained. "I'm still not used to it."

Before Nashi could react, Emma stomped on the ground, and an iron pillar sprouted out of the ground and hit Nashi in the elbow.

"Gaaaahhh!" After reacting to the initial pain, Nashi realized her shoulder was back in its socket. She looked over at Emma. "Thanks."

"Just this once, since we're working together."

Nashi nodded in understanding. "I wouldn't have it any other way." She deactivated the rabbit symbol on her arm. "I guess Romeo knows how to work around enhanced speed. So that wouldn't be so useful. Gate of the Dragon, enhance my flames: Lóng!"

"Good thinking." Emma charged towards Asuka. "Tetsuryuuken!"

"I'll go for the flame guy." Nashi rushed towards Romeo, then clasped her hands together. "Karyuu no Kouen!" At first, the flames seemed to engulf Romeo, but then they imploded, slammed into Nashi, and disappeared.

"I control flames," Romeo explained.

Nashi charged forward.

"Are you really going to try the exact same thing that got your shoulder dislocated?" Romeo grabbed Nashi's arm. Then his eyes widened, and he yelped and withdrew his hand.

"Flames aren't the only hot things," Nashi chided. She held up her right arm, which was now giving off a faint red glow. "Have fun with this."

Emma blocked shot after shot, desperately trying to find an opening. Then she jumped in surprise as Romeo slammed into Asuka, sending them both tumbling to the ground. She looked over at Nashi. "A little heads-up would be nice."

Nashi shrugged. "It worked. Come on." She charged. "Karyuu no Houkou!"

"Tetsuryuu no Houkou!"

The flames combined with the iron filings, creating a shower of molten iron droplets that battered Romeo and Asuka before they could get up.

Nashi and Emma grinned, then passed a casual high-five. Then their expressions changed to concern as they saw steam rising from the dust. As the dust cleared, they could see a water shield which was being held up by Asuka.

"Dammit," Nashi hissed. She pulled out a key. "Well, it's been a while since I summoned you guys so… gate of the Scorpion, I open thee: Scorpio!"

The Scorpion spirit poofed into existence. "We are! Need my help again, Nashi?"

Nashi nodded. "These guys are pretty tough. Romeo can control flames, so I can't hit him."

"Well, who needs flames? Sand Buster!" The sand blaster on his back curled around to point at Romeo, then blasted sand in his face.

"Oh, no you don't!" Asuka pointed her guns at Scorpio.

"I'd say the same to you. Karyuu no Tekken!" Nashi swung a flame-engulfed metal fist at Asuka, punching her in the stomach and causing her lightning shots to hit the ground harmlessly.

"Nice going!" Emma congratulated. "Tetsuryuu no Houkou!" She unleashed her breath weapon into Scorpio's sand torrent, causing it to become a dangerous mix of sand and iron filings.

Asuka looked over at Romeo, who was now unconscious. Then she looked back at her three opponents and nodded. "You've done well. However…" She stowed her guns, then brought up her arms. "I will say that my guns merely focus my magic to make it less destructive." She extended an arm towards them, and a whirlwind tossed them high into the air like dolls.

"Gate of the tiger, maintain my balance: Hǔ!" Nashi righted herself in midair and skidded to a halt on the ground.

"I'm not done yet." Asuka then launched lightning at the three of them.

Nashi shakily maintained her footing. "I won't… go down… that… easily…"

Emma got to her feet. "Gihi! I'm just getting started."

* * *

Hisoka watched the LacrimaVision and sighed. "You say you can't work together, and yet, this?" Suddenly, he sensed two minds slowly gaining consciousness. He turned his head to see Akane and William stirring. "Oh, boy…" He watched as the two slowly became aware of one another, then jumped back, avoiding eye contact. "Look, I'm not going to tell anyone if you don't want me to…"

"I-It's not like that!" William protested.

"Like what? That you two are comfortable enough to sleep together? I beg to differ, since you fell asleep like that."

"We're not…" began Akane.

"Not what? Comfortable enough with each other to sleep together? Look, I'm not assuming anything other than what I saw. You two are clearly comfortable around one another, and there's no reason to be embarrassed about it."

"There is when you consider what the rest of the team thinks it implies," muttered William.

"I won't tell, okay? Besides, everyone already saw it." He sighed and laid back on his pillow.

Suddenly, the room shook violently, knocking a few things over and jolting Merlin awake.

"Whazzat?!" Merlin started.

Hisoka looked at the LacrimaVision, which had gone static. The audio, on the other hand, was working fine.

"It seems the fight has become intense enough to destroy the arena floor for the second time in a row," Chapati announced. "Sorry to those viewing from a LacrimaVision. They should be working again in a moment…"

* * *

Asuka walked over to where Nashi and Emma lay on the ground, unmoving. "Was that all you had?"

No response.

Asuka sighed. "Look, I know you can do better than this. I'm not saying I'll go easy on you or let you win, but… I want you to win, okay? You are the daughters of two of the most powerful dragonslayers in the world. I know I did a number on you guys, but are you really just going to give up like this? I know you can defeat me, and I know you have more in you than this. So come on!"

Torden watched the LacrimaVision in dismay. "Come on, young humans. I watched you defeat dragons. How can you be taken down this easily? I know Asuka is powerful, but you can surpass her, alright? You two are Fairy Tail mages. You can't go down this easily."

"Don't you dare end the match!" Asuka shouted to the commentators above. "I know they have more in them than this." She looked down at the two dragonslayers. "Come on, you two. What was all that talk about supporting your friend and having the same conviction as him? Give me everything you've got!" She looked specifically at Nashi. "What was that when you were fighting your dad, if you can't stand up to that?" She jumped in response to a hand on her shoulder, and turned to see a battered-up Romeo giving her a look of pleading.

"Leave it."

"I can't…"

Romeo shook his head. "If they won't get up, they won't get up."

Asuka looked back at her still unmoving opponents, then at Romeo. "They're the new generation of this guild. They're not going down this easily. I can't let them!" She took one last look at Nashi and Emma, then gave a sigh of defeat. "Alright, fine. Let's just…" She broke off with a yelp of surprise as an explosion threw both her and Romeo into the air. They fell through several more levels of the mines below Domus Flau.

"While looking at my body, I think you failed to notice my left arm," Nashi's voice echoed throughout the cavern.

Asuka slowly got up, groaning. She looked over at Nashi's body. Sure enough, three of the symbols on her arm were glowing, as well as the red line below them.

"Tetsuryuukon!" An iron pillar clipped Asuka's shoulder from above and slammed into the ground next to her. She clutched her injured shoulder, which luckily hadn't been dislocated, but still hurt like hell; it would probably leave a bruise. She looked up to see Emma lowering herself, in much better shape than Asuka remembered seeing her when she last looked.

"Thanks for the healing, Nashi. Now how do I use your magic?"

 _It's your magic, except focused more on aggression than hardening yourself._

"I'm going to pretend to know what that means."

 _Just try imagining something you really hate,_ Nashi suggested. _Something that would make you really aggressive. I did that when I was first learning to use my magic._

Emma clenched her fist, picturing a crystal clear image of Nashi. Her fist then ignited. "Nice." She covered her flaming fist in iron scales.

"What…? How…?"

"Tetsuenryuu no Shakunetsuken!" Emma caught Asuka off-guard with the combination of red-hot scales and swirling flames, sending her sprawling on the ground.

"Flames? From you?"

"It seems Nashi's new Eastern Zodiac powers come in handy in team fights," Emma mused.

Asuka grinned, then created a swirling sphere of high-speed wind, tearing up the surrounding floor, walls and ceiling. She was surprised, but kept her cool when she saw that Emma was standing there unaffected.

"Heat up the air around you enough, and it'll get too thin to do much to you." Sure enough, Asuka could see the debris getting sucked towards Emma and then shooting up towards the surface. "Tetsuenryuu no Houkou!" Emma released a new breath weapon – millions of tiny droplets of molten iron, which sent Asuka flying into a back wall and slumping to the ground, unable to stand and covered in burns.

"Well… done…" Asuka groaned. "While I wanted you to win, I didn't expect you to do it. And those abilities were even more unexpected."

Emma's iron scales disappeared, and Nashi's body stirred, the glowing symbols on her arms going out.

"You alright, Nashi?"

"Y-Yeah…" Nashi groaned. "I shouldn't have thrown my body around like that."

"And the winners are Dragon King!" Chapati announced.

Emma and Nashi could hear the crowd cheering above.

* * *

Hisoka looked up to the sound of footsteps. "You know, I wasn't expecting to see your opponent rooting for you."

Nashi shrugged as she and Emma walked in. "It's sort of like wanting more of a challenge, I guess." She glared at Emma. "And that was only a desperate situation where you were my only available teammate. Don't expect me to do that again."

"Well, to be fair, I absolutely hated having you inside me," Emma retorted. "I'm glad it's over."

"Oh, yeah," Hisoka remembered. "Nashi, I meant to ask you what the hell that was."

"Separating from the body isn't the only thing the gate of the sheep can do," explained William. "You can also go inside someone else's body in order to temporarily give them your powers. As for Emma's sudden recovery, that was the gate of the horse, which allows the user to heal people they touch."

Nashi grinned at Emma. "See? It was all me."

Emma pressed her forehead aggressively against Nashi's. "Oh, yeah? And who was pulling off all the battle moves while you were lying on the ground."

"Ahem!" Porlyusica cleared her throat at the girls, prompting them to stop so as to avoid the old woman's wrath.

Hisoka sighed, then looked around the room at the rest of the team. "Well, tomorrow's our break. What do you guys want to do?"

Thomas shrugged. "Explore places?"

"I'd like to go swimming," William declared. "It's pretty much the only rigorous exercise I can do without hurting myself."

"I'm down with that," Merlin agreed.

"I think it might help me recover," Hisoka speculated. "I'd like to go there, too."

"I don't think so," Porlyusica argued. "Those bandages aren't waterproof, and the chlorine could get in your wound."

"I can breathe underwater at swimming pools with no ill effects from the chlorine," Hisoka reassured. "I think I'll be fine."

"Breathing and sanitation are two different things. You can't let that wound get poisoned."

"Aren't there special waterproof bandages available?"

"If you really want to. However, you'll have to change out of them and clean the wound as soon as you're done, because watertight bandages are not very good for you."

Hisoka sighed. "Right. Well…" He watched the LacrimaVision. "I guess we have one more fight, and then our break."

* * *

 **Yeah, sorry that this arc hasn't had a proper plot (unless you count cool new powers and tragic injuries that will stick to the story). This was just sort of a synopsis of the team recovering from their adventures, as well as finally getting to the thing that brought them all together in the first place. Hope you enjoyed!**


	36. GMG Arc - A Day Off

Hisoka opened his eyes, then sat up and tried stretching, wincing in pain and reflexively moving his hand to his side. He was confused at first, but then he remembered the events of the previous day. He looked around the hotel room. Emma and Akane were still asleep, while William was sitting up in her bed, reading a book. "Where are the others?"

William looked over at Hisoka. "Well, Henri and Thomas went exploring, and I believe Nashi went to go grab something to eat. Merlin is out looking for new metals to eat."

Hisoka nodded. Then he looked down at his bandages, remembering that he had slept in them, and they probably needed changing. He started to unwrap them.

"Wait!" William commanded. "You'll want someone else's help with that. I'm still recovering, so I can't walk over there, but don't worry. Nashi should be back shortly."

"I'd rather not rely on that." Hisoka threw some water at Akane, who woke with a start, then looked over at Hisoka.

"What was that for?"

"Sorry," Hisoka apologized. "I need someone to help change my bandages, and William can't walk over here."

"Right…" Akane stood up and went to Hisoka's nightstand, taking some fresh gauze and the roll of bandages, then sat down next to Hisoka, slowly unwrapping the old bandages.

"Sorry about that. You know, come to think of it, I could have just walked over to William."

"Oh, yeah," William realized. "That probably would have been better."

"It's fine," Akane reassured. "Just try to remember."

Hisoka nodded and glanced down at Akane. Suddenly, his wound flared up with pain. All over again, he saw Akane in his partially dragonized form, the crimson blade going through Hisoka's left side. He scrambled back and delivered a water-assisted punch to Akane, sending him tumbling off the foot of the bed and slamming into the bed across from them. Hisoka then fell off the bed himself and scrambled up against the wall.

"Hisoka, are you alright?!" William exclaimed.

Hisoka pressed his back up against William's bed, breathing heavily, his heart pounding. Then the pain from all of that sudden movement set in, and he clutched his now-unbandaged side. Each breath caused a spike in the intensity of the pain.

William dropped to the floor, scooting over to Hisoka on her knees. She looked down at the stab wound and saw that it was bleeding profusedly.

The door burst open, and Nashi rushed in, carrying some groceries. "I heard Hisoka scream. Is everything al…" Her eyes widened as she saw the mess. "…right…?"

Akane slowly stood up. "I-I don't know what happened. He asked me to help him change his bandages, and as I was unwrapping them, h-he attacked me."

Nashi looked over at Hisoka and William. William was holding the wound to reduce the bleeding, while Hisoka just sat there, trembling and breathing heavily, his eyes wide with terror.

"It's a panic attack," William explained. "I've had them before. Can you grab the gauze and bandages?"

Nashi nodded, setting down groceries, then heading over and picking up the supplies that had been knocked to the floor, then walked over to William, setting them down next to her.

"Now, I need a wet cloth."

Nashi looked around.

"There should be some cloth on Hisoka's nightstand."

Nashi looked over, picked up a piece of cloth, then rushed to the bathroom, coming out ten seconds later with the cloth dripping.

"Thanks." William took the cloth, then started wiping off the blood around the exit wound. She pressed one of the pieces of gauze against it. "Hisoka, I need you to lie down, okay?" She assisted Hisoka in lying down on his back, then did the same thing with the entry wound. Then she took the bandages, making sure the pieces of gauze were held firmly in place, and wrapped the bandages around him.

"S-Sorry…" Hisoka stammered. "I-I don't know what got into me. Just… watching Akane s-so much as touch the wound… s-suddenly I… f-found myself reliving it…"

"I know exactly what you're going through," William replied. "I can't really be comfortable around Torden. You'll probably remember that I even got a panic attack myself the first time I met him, just because he's a dragon." She looked over at Akane as she finished with Hisoka's bandages. "Even yesterday, Akane, what you were experiencing was the reliving of a traumatic event. Now you understand, right? Even though Hisoka consciously knew you were helping him just now, he couldn't control himself. So stop beating yourself up over what you did." She crawled over to Akane. "Hey. Reliving a traumatic event isn't something you can just simply turn off. However, you can work around it."

"Mm." Akane stared down at the floor and continued to lean against the wall.

"Look me in the eye, Akane."

Akane looked up at William – her short, unkempt blue hair, the reading glasses that she'd forgotten to take off, her large, brown eyes.

"I'm still alive," William stated in a firm tone. "Just let that repeat in your mind: William Redfox is still alive. It's how I got more comfortable around Torden, by repeating over and over in my mind that he's our friend and our guildmate. It's not one hundred percent effective, but it does make things easier."

Hisoka smiled at William's attempts to calm Akane down, then stood up, grunting in pain. "And you're my best friend, Akane. I mean, maybe it would be better if someone else changed my bandages, but I'm not going to get mad at you for having a flashback, and just because I relived that moment doesn't mean we're no longer friends." He noticed that his heart was still pounding, but he shrugged it off as he went and grabbed a change of clothes, then went to the bathroom to change. He came out a few minutes later in his normal attire.

"Oh, I just remembered…" Nashi reached into one of the grocery bags and pulled out a winged fish that appeared to already have been cooked, then held it out to Hisoka. "I caught this separated from its flock, and I thought you might like it. I even cooked it for you."

"Thanks," Hisoka replied. "It would probably be good to get some food in my system after all that." He took the fish and started eating it.

Nashi nodded. "Plus, you haven't even eaten since you got stabbed."

"Mf… yeah, thah thoo," Hisoka agreed through a mouthful of fish. Then he swallowed. "And it tastes that much better. However, I probably shouldn't eat too much, since my stomach did get cut in half."

"But I put it back together, right?"

"Cauterization seals it back together, but it doesn't restore the damaged lining," Hisoka replied. "That'll take some time to heal." He offered the rest of the fish to Akane. "You want this? I don't have a way of storing it for later."

Akane shrugged. "Sure." He looked over at William, who had settled down beside him. "You want help getting back to your bed?"

"I mean, I was in the middle of reading that book." William jerked a thumb at the book she had left on her bed. "But I think you could use a bit of company."

"Well, I could sit there with you."

William shrugged. "I guess that's fair."

Akane started to get up, then scooped up William, who wrapped her arms around his neck for extra support. Then Akane stood the rest of the way with William and carried her over to her bed, setting her down and then sitting next to her.

There was a knock on the door. Hisoka limped over and opened it to see Elkhart.

"Yes?"

Elkhart stepped inside, opened his mouth, then closed it again. He stood there for a moment, then opened his mouth again and succeeded in speaking. "Where's Merlin?"

"He's out shopping for new metals to eat. What do you need him for?"

Elkhart took a moment to think of a response. Then he started sweating, and Hisoka could hear a significant increase in nervousness. "I-I'll tell you guys when I'm ready, alright? I want Merlin to be the first to hear this, and… I'm really not ready to tell anyone else, okay?"

"O… kay…?" Hisoka scratched his head. "Well, can't you use that tracking thing you infused into our guildmarks?"

Elkhart snapped his fingers in realization. "Right! Of course. Sorry, I haven't been thinking yesterday since clear… erm… clearly… since… yesterday. Sorry…" He took a few deep breaths. "Well, you seem to be doing well, Hisoka… I'll be…" He turned and immediately ran into the doorframe. He rubbed his forehead, then turned in the right direction. "I'll be going now. Hey, Torden!"

Torden lifted his head as Elkhart headed off. "What's with him?"

"I'm not sure," Hisoka replied. "Maybe he wants to ask Merlin out or something? He did seem really nervous, much like someone is when they have a crush." He turned around and saw William's face. "Um… is something wrong?"

"Sorry, I just… sometimes make that face when I find something cute."

Hisoka thought for a moment. "Maybe we could…" He pondered for a moment, then saw Emma stirring.

Emma sat up and looked over at the others. "Wha're you talkin' 'bou…?" she mumbled.

"We've deduced that Elkhart has a crush on your brother," Hisoka explained. "I was trying to come up with ideas for what we can do to help."

"We could set up a date for the two of them," Nashi suggested.

Emma perked up at the mention of Merlin. "Oh my god, I fuckin' love this idea! What's the plan?"

"Nothing yet," William replied. She looked over at Akane. "Any ideas?"

Akane looked around at the others, then swallowed his mouthful of fish, and took another look, a concerned expression on his face. He sighed. "You're going to drag me into this whether I like it or not, aren't you?"

"Absolutely!" Hisoka beamed. "That's what friends do."

"Yeah, not really. Well, anyway…" Akane stood up. "I suppose I could fly around the city and look for some nice places."

"Thanks, Akane!" As Akane flew out the door, Hisoka turned to the others. "Well, then, let's form a plan… ooh! Emma, how about you get to Merlin before Elkhart can? It might be hard, but I think you can do it."

"Right." Emma charged out the door. "Oh, I know! Hey Torden, can you help me scan the city for Merlin?"

Torden gave Emma a disapproving look. "Let me guess: you're dragging me into this as well."

Emma shrugged. "I just want you to help me find him."

Torden rolled his eyes. "Fine." He stood up and stretched, then lowered himself to make it easier for Emma to get on his back.

* * *

Merlin held up the chunk of potassium, then took a bite out of it and chewed for a moment. Then his eyes widened as his mouth started to burn, and he spit out the potassium, as well as a bit of flame.

"It is to be expected."

Merlin jumped at the sudden voice behind him and turned to see Elkhart.

"Potassium is, after all, an alkali metal, and you know how those are with water."

Merlin shrugged. "I figured it was worth a try. I mean, Nashi's immune to fire, so I thought I might possibly be immune to metal-related reactions."

"I guess you were wrong." Elkhart looked over at the partially-burned piece of the metal.

"Yeah, I guess. Maybe if I dried out my mouth first?"

"That doesn't sound like the best idea either."

"I mean, I'd only be doing it once, so it wouldn't be that bad."

Elkhart nodded absentmindedly. "Right. Well, anyway, ummm…"

"Hm?"

Elkhart stood there for a moment, trying to think of something to say.

"Did you want something?"

Elkhart continued to stand there in silence, beginning to tremble.

"Are you alright?"

Elkhart opened his mouth, but no sound came out. Eventually, he managed a "never mind" and flew off using his meteor spell.

"O… kay, then?" Merlin held up the rest of the potassium, wondering how he could safely store it. He turned and nearly ran straight into Emma. "Um, yes?"

"What did he say to you?" asked Emma.

"Well, we had a conversation about potassium."

"That's all?"

"Well, he seemed like he was about to say something, but then he flew off without saying it."

Emma nodded. "Seems to add up. Now tell me, what do you think of Elkhart."

Merlin raised an eyebrow. "Um… he's cool, I guess."

Emma nodded, resting a hand on Merlin's shoulder. "Right, right. Anything else?"

"Like what?"

"Like, what stands out about him? What do you like doing with him? Any defining personality traits that you really like? Come on, I want all the details."

"Well, he invents cool gadgets, and his smile is really warm. Also, where he put is guildmark is kinda cool… why are you asking me all this?"

"Nothing. No reason. Carry on."

"Um… okay? Well, he's calm and collected, but also kind of fiery, as well as nervous at times. And I like helping him out with stuff. Plus, the way he sometimes talks to himself is kinda cute, I guess."

Emma continued nodding. "You must like Elkhart quite a bit."

"I mean, yeah, he's a good friend." Merlin looked away nervously, blushing a bit. "What is this about?"

Emma chuckled as she heard the word "friend". _Right. Totally._ "Well, Merlin, it was nice talking. See ya!" She turned and bolted.

Merlin stood there for a moment, frozen. "What was that all about?"

* * *

"Okay," Akane began, "so there's the palace gardens, and there are also a few nice restaurants around."

Hisoka nodded. "A restaurant. Interesting…"

"We could reserve a table for them," William suggested.

"I'm not sure if you can reserve a table less than a day ahead of time," Hisoka pointed out.

"True…"

"Well, I think it's worth a try," Nashi decided. "Let's do it."

"Can we include a walk in the palace garden somewhere in there?" asked Akane.

"I think so," Hisoka agreed.

Just then, Emma walked into the room. "I think I can confirm that Merlin likes Elkhart. When I asked him what he thinks, he started complimenting his physical features alongside other things. Also, Elkhart's behavior has been consistent with our conclusion of a crush. He went to Merlin, but panicked and fled before he could get a sentence out."

Hisoka grinned. "Then I think we can carry on with this. Let's pick a restaurant!" He limped over to the door, then sprouted his wings. However, as he lifted off, he suddenly tilted to his left and crashed into the ground, the wind knocked out of him and pain shooting through his entire left side.

The others ran over to Hisoka, with Nashi kneeling next to him. "Are you alright?" she questioned.

Hisoka grunted, trying to get a word out through the agony and continuing to clutch his left side.

Nashi slid her right arm under Hisoka's ribcage, wincing at the sound of the metal scraping against the cobblestone, then slid her other arm under his legs, picking him up bridal style and carrying him over to his bed, setting him down gently. She then repeated herself. "Hisoka, are you okay?"

"I… will be…" Hisoka grunted, breathing in a quick, huffy manner. "I guess… I shouldn't… fly… until… I've recov… recovered." His face twisted in pain. "Damn, that… was a bad… idea…"

Nashi ran her fingers over Hisoka's ribcage. "Well, the bolts seem to still be in place, so that's a good thing."

"Yeah," Hisoka agreed. "I guess I should rest here a bit, though." He looked over at Akane. "Can you go pick out a restaurant? You've spent more time with them than I have, so you would have a better idea of what they'll like."

Akane nodded.

"I'll come, too," Emma declared. "I am Merlin's big sister, after all. I've known both of them way longer than you."

"Fair enough." Akane picked up Emma and flew off.

Hisoka looked over at Nashi. "What do you say we go check out the swimming pool?"

"Well, you need to rest, so…"

"Water's good for me, remember? Also, I got those waterproof bandages from Porlyusica for exactly this purpose."

Nashi nodded. "True. But we should wait for the others."

William nodded in agreement and looked across at Hisoka. "Nashi can't carry both of us very effectively."

Nashi looked between them, her eyebrow raised. "Is that a challenge?"

"Don't you dare," warned Hisoka. "You could badly hurt both of us if you tried that."

Nashi nodded. "Yeah, you're right. Carrying injured people shouldn't be a challenge."

* * *

Elkhart leaned against the alley wall and sighed in frustration. "Why am I so nervous about this? Merlin is the person I'm most likely to trust with this secret."

"Nervous about what? Just curious."

Elkhart jumped slightly and looked over at Utkarsh. "Usually, I'm the one startling people like that."

Utkarsh shrugged. "Not this time, I guess. I happen to have a bit of natural stealth."

Elkhart chuckled. "Same here, actually."

Utkarsh nodded in understanding. "So what is it you're nervous about?"

Elkhart shrugged. "Well, you're not someone I know very well, so I'd rather not tell you. It's a secret of mine – one I figured out about three-and-a-half weeks ago. At first I was just going to reveal it to all of Dragon King if they won the Games. Then, however, I thought I'd just present myself at the Post-Games Ball. However, after I went to someone who had some experience with this type of secret, he advised that I come out to my closest friend first, then maybe some other close friends. After that, I could make it public."

"'Come out', huh?"

Elkhart tensed up as he realized what he'd said. "Uh… you weren't supposed to hear that."

"Sorry," Utkarsh apologized.

Elkhart shook his head. "It was my bad. I could have phrased it as 'reveal it', and you wouldn't have noticed."

Utkarsh gave a huff of laughter. "Well, being straight myself, I can't offer much in the way of advice, but I will say it's normal to be nervous when revealing something like orientation or gender identity. Burah and I have been close friends since we were little, and he still panicked and changed the subject several times before he managed to come out to me."

Elkhart nodded. "Merlin got pretty flustered himself when he was coming out as pansexual." He thought for a moment, then grinned. "Emma, on the other hand…" He snickered a bit, trying to contain his laughter. "She just came right out with complete confidence. Nero, back when he was in the guild… well, they had been hanging out for a bit, and then he asked her out, and she just flat out said in front of the whole guild that she wasn't interested in men, surprising everyone."

Utkarsh chuckled. "Yeah, some people do have that kind of confidence. Just… you do you. Don't try to force anything that feels unnatural. That's really the only advice I can offer."

Elkhart nodded. "Yeah, that kind of mindset is sort of what suppressed my magic… I think. Well, I didn't mean to tell you anything. At least I didn't tell you what I was coming out _as_."

"True. I guess Merlin will be the first to hear that."

Elkhart nodded. "Well, this talk was nice, anyway. You may have possibly given me a boost in confidence."

"Happy to help." Utkarsh walked off. "I'm headed to the swimming pool."

"Oh, and that was impressive, defeating Natsu and Lucy yesterday."

"Yeah, Burah and I make a pretty good team." Utkarsh disappeared around a corner.

* * *

"Okay, that's unsettling."

Hisoka looked down at himself, then back up at Nashi. "What's so unsettling about this?"

"Those blue bandages," Nashi replied.

"Well, they match these swim trunks."

"Yeah, and it's unsettling," Nashi asserted. "Bandages aren't supposed to match stuff. They're just supposed to be white."

"Well, waterproof bandages happen to be blue," Hisoka replied. "And what about you? I'd say it's the metal arm combined with the bikini that's unsettling."

"Well, I think it's rather stylish." Nashi crossed her arms. Suddenly, her eyes widened and she tensed up. Then she quickly withdrew her arms and then reached over to the spot where her right elbow had been, rubbing it in pain.

Hisoka gave a _pfft_ of laughter. "Well, stylish or not, you'll want to be careful with metal joints near bare skin."

Nashi growled at Hisoka, startling him.

"Uh… since when do you make that noise?"

"Since whenever people annoy me. Congrats on taking as long as you did."

"Um… thanks?" Hisoka wasn't sure whether to feel flattered or guilty. Then he remembered that time Nashi had commented on his smell, and decided on the latter. "Sorry. You do look cool. What I meant was it's unfamiliar."

Nashi smiled. "Thanks. You still look weird with those bandages, though."

Before Hisoka could react, Akane stepped out of the locker room. "Okay, I'm ready."

"Oi! Over here." The three of them looked out at the pool to see William waving next to Emma.

"Coming right up!" Akane ran over and did a cannonball, splashing both of the Redfox sisters.

Hisoka walked slowly to the edge of the pool, then sort of fell in, worried that if he climbed in, he might hurt himself by moving too many abdominal muscles. He sank to the bottom and then rolled over, then stood himself up. "I already feel better. It may not be any better at healing me, but it's easing the pain quite a bit."

"Flaming cannonball!" Nashi rushed forward and burst into flames as she hurtled towards the surface of the pool, causing an explosion of hot water that swept them all back about fifteen feet.

"Oh, you wanna go?" Emma extended her arms towards Nashi. "Tetsuryuu no Suishin-ki!" Both her arms morphed into propellers and sent currents of water at Nashi.

"Would you guys like to see how my magic reacts with clean water?" Akane inquired, grinning wildly. He waded towards the fight, then lit up his hand with the swirling crimson energy. Then he stuck his lit-up hand in the water, creating an explosion that knocked all three of them back.

"Oi, there are injured people here!" William complained.

Hisoka stepped between William and the others. "Don't worry. I'll make sure I don't hit you."

"Hisoka! You're injured, too."

"I may not be able to move a whole lot of muscles, but I can obliterate all three of you without moving a whole lot of muscles!" He stuck his arm in the water, pointed at the center of the three of them. "Kawatatsu no Baasuto!" Currents of water spiraled around his arm, then shot in three different trails toward Nashi, Emma and Akane, who were thrown up in the air by the geyser-like eruptions. "You forget: water is my domain."

The three crashed back down into the water, then resurfaced, gasping for air. Then Nashi burst out laughing. "You know what? I'm having a lot of fun here."

Hisoka smiled. "Indeed."

Akane swam over to William. "Sorry. We did get a bit rowdy there."

William took a moment to think about what had just happened, then smiled. "Well, I guess I'm really glad that you can be yourself again."

Hisoka nodded in agreement. "You've been really down since what happened yesterday, but now you're acting more like your cheerful, playful self again."

"Thanks."

Suddenly, Hisoka remembered something. "Akane, did you get that date taken care of?"

Akane sighed. "Well, I ran into Henri and Thomas along the way, and since I don't really want to actively participate in this, I asked them to take care of it." He chuckled to himself. "However, I guess I'll still find it somewhat amusing."

* * *

Merlin walked into the hotel room. "Hello?" It was completely empty. He went over to his bed and found a note.

 _Ryuuin Restaurant. 6:00 PM. Dress nicely._

"Um… what?" The handwriting was shaky, as if done by a hand that wasn't good at holding things, perhaps not human. "One of the cats wrote this, didn't they?" He opened his bag. "Let's see… I don't want to dress formally, but something nice that I wouldn't wear to the Games or something like that… maybe the same thing I wear on Council visits?" He pulled out his white overcoat and nodded. "This works. I guess that's where the others went."

* * *

Elkhart looked up from the book he was reading as he heard a knock on his hotel room door. He got up and opened the door to see Happy hovering at eye level with a slip of paper.

Happy handed Elkhart the paper, covering his mouth and snickering. "I was asked to give you this."

Elkhart took the paper and read it.

 _Ryuuin Restaurant. 6:00 PM. Dress nicely._

Elkhart looked back up at Happy. "Um… who sent this?"

"My lips are sealed." Happy continued snickering.

"Well, you're making that face you make when you get wind of something romantic."

"Am I? Well, I guess you'll have to find out, won't you?" He flew off.

Elkhart looked back down at the note. "Well, whatever this is, it should be interesting."

* * *

Merlin headed across the restaurant, up to the counter. "Um… I was asked by some friends of mine to meet them here. Do you know where they'd be?"

The cashier looked down at his list. "Let's see… are you Merlin-san, by any chance?"

Merlin nodded. "That would be me."

"Your friend is sitting at that table over there."

Merlin followed the man's finger and spotted a small table with Elkhart sitting at it. He walked over and sat across from Elkhart.

Elkhart looked up at Merlin and pulled out the note. "Did you have something to do with this?"

Merlin shook his head and pulled out his note. "I got one, too."

One of the waiters walked up to their table. "And what will you two be having?"

Merlin looked up at the waiter. "Um… can we wait for the rest of our friends to get here?"

"We were told it would just be the two of you."

"Really?" inquired Elkhart. "Are you sure you don't have something mixed up?"

"We were asked to reserve a table for Merlin Redfox and Elkhart Scarlet-Fernandes."

Merlin's brow furrowed. "Huh."

"And your meals will be payed for by a cat going by the name of Henri. She is the one who reserved your table."

"Okay, then…" Merlin and Elkhart both picked up their menus and read through the contents.

"What the hell is 'dragon curry'?" Elkhart asked.

"An incredibly spicy curry," the waiter replied. "The ingredients are right there on the menu."

Merlin chuckled to himself. "Sounds like something Nashi would like." They continued looking through the menu.

Elkhart's eyes widened. "Steaks topped with strawberry jam?!"

The waiter nodded. "Those come with a side of your choice."

"Okay, in that case I will have that with…" Elkhart scanned through the list of sides. "…this salad right here."

Merlin flopped the menu down on the counter. "You know what? Just because I can't really decide, I'll have what he's having."

The waiter nodded. "Any drinks?"

"Water," Merlin replied.

"I'll have green tea," Elkhart added.

The waiter wrote down their orders and headed off.

"I wonder what Henri wanted us to come here for," Merlin speculated.

Elkhart shrugged. "Well, it works, anyway."

Merlin raised an eyebrow. "For what?"

"You know that thing I was about to talk to you about earlier today?"

"Yeah."

"Well, I'd still like to talk to you about that, and I was kind of too nervous to approach you on purpose. This was a great way for me to get back to you. Although…" Elkhart looked around the room. "I'd rather talk in a more isolated place."

Merlin thought for a moment. "What about the palace garden?"

Elkhart nodded. "That works. Although, I would like to go ahead and eat first."

"You said it. I'm pretty hungry."

* * *

"What's the news?" William questioned.

"The restaurant is taken care of," Henri replied. "I picked one near the palace garden so that they'd find their way there."

"The messages have been sent," Thomas added.

William nodded. "Emma, time to head out."

"Aye, captain!"

"Hisoka, I calculate a ninety-one percent chance that they will head for the palace garden. Can you make that distance with your injury?"

Hisoka nodded. "Depends on how quickly you need me there."

"I estimate ten minutes waiting for their food, and another twenty eating it. Then perhaps ten to fifteen minutes to walk to the palace gardens."

"Forty minutes should be plenty of time, captain!" Hisoka declared. He picked up the metal walking stick William had made for him.

"Excellent. Nashi, Akane, go with him! Stand watch from various locations in the park, and stay out of sight."

"Aye, captain!" The three of them saluted and then headed out the door.

As Henri watched the others exit the hotel, then turned to William. "'Captain'?"

William shrugged. "As Merlin's twin sister, it makes sense that I would be in charge of this operation."

Henri shrugged. "Whatever. This operation doesn't really have a central leader."

* * *

Merlin sat down on the bench, then beckoned to Elkhart, who sat down next to him. "So what is it you were wanting to tell me?"

Elkhart's cheeks reddened, and he began sweating. "Well… I still don't want to just say it out loud."

Merlin nodded. "I can wait." He looked up at the stars, marveling at the sight of a meteor. "You know, I think I know why the others sent us to that restaurant."

"Why?"

"I'm pretty sure I accidentally gave Emma the impression that I have a crush on you, and they decided to set up a date."

Elkhart sighed. "I think we should have a word with them about that. Actually, I think _I_ gave them the impression that I had a crush on _you_. But I was actually flustered about something entirely different."

"Maybe it was both."

Elkhart nodded, then sat there trembling. Finally, he blurted it out. "You know what, can I whisper it in your ear? I think I can comfortably do it like that."

Merlin nodded.

"So, I was just going to tell it to the whole team if you guys won the Games. Remember that? But then I got some advice from Jonah on how to go about it, and I decided this was a better option. Oh, and you are the first to hear this, so don't mention it to anyone until I say you can." He leaned over, covering the gap between his mouth and Merlin's ear with his hand.

As Merlin heard what Elkhart had to say, his eyes briefly widened, and then he smiled and sat up, looking Elkhart in the eye. He nodded in approval. "I always knew there was something about you, and that matches your eccentric personality perfectly. Also, I'm glad you trusted me enough to tell me first. It means a lot to me."

Elkhart smiled and gave a small chuckle of appreciation.

Merlin stood up, then turned to Elkhart. "Well, shall we head back?"

Elkhart nodded. "Let's head back to your place first. Henri has some explaining to do, and I'd like to hear it."

* * *

Henri, Thomas, Emma and William looked up as the door opened. Then they all grinned as they saw Merlin and Elkhart walking in.

Elkhart pointed at Henri. "You have some explaining to do."

"How was it?" asked Emma.

Just then, Nashi, Hisoka and Akane entered the room.

"So how was your date?" asked Nashi.

"'Date'?" inquired Merlin, raising an eyebrow.

"Yep," confirmed William. "We inferred from Elkhart's behavior that he had a crush on you, so we sent Emma to interview you on what you thought about Elkhart, and then she reported back to us saying that you seemed to like him."

"You really seemed to be enjoying the date," Hisoka added. "However, I think we need to apologize. I was watching you from a distance, and…" He looked guiltily at Elkhart. "…I sort of heard what you whispered in his ear. Sorry. My ears are just a little too sensitive sometimes…"

Elkhart looked wide-eyed at Hisoka. "You weren't supposed to hear that…"

"I kind of already knew," Akane added, "due to the weird way that I recognize people. It works by giving me a feeling for people's souls, so I can always tell who's who, as well as soul-related things like gender."

Elkhart looked around the room. "Who else knows?"

"I haven't told anyone," Hisoka replied. His heart sank as he realized what he had done. "Elkhart, I'm sorry…"

"Oh, you are, are you?!" Elkhart exclaimed. "You don't listen to people when they're whispering to someone else! And you most certainly don't spy on your friends!" He turned and blasted the door off its hinges, not even bothering to open it, and stormed off into the night.

Hisoka stared through the open doorway, not sure how to respond. "I think I upset him…"

"You think?!" Merlin turned and headed out the door. "Nobody follow me. Got it?"

Hisoka went and sat on his bed. "I can't believe that turned into such a huge misunderstanding."

"Well, we shouldn't really be meddling in other people's affairs," Akane pointed out.

"True that," William agreed.

"It's my fault for suggesting it," Nashi added.

"I can't believe I did that." Hisoka laid down and closed his eyes, not even bothering to take his clothes off.

* * *

"Elkhart!" Merlin shouted. "Elkhart!" He ran through the empty streets. "Elkhart, I want to talk to you!" He kept searching, until he spotted the scarlet-haired boy sitting under an arched bridge, his legs pulled up and his face buried in his knees. "Oi, Elkhart, are you alright?"

Elkhart sat up and looked up at Merlin as he approached. "Oh, hey, Merlin."

"Hey." Merlin sat down next to Elkhart. "Look, they didn't mean any harm, alright? They really did think you had a crush on me."

"Right." Elkhart sighed. "Well, the real trouble is Hisoka. He thinks it's okay to just eavesdrop and learn some pretty fucking sensitive secrets."

"At least he didn't tell anyone."

"You think that's the problem?! He spied on us, and because of it, he now knows something I wasn't ready for him to know."

"Yeah, I understand. He has some personal space issues. But he didn't mean any harm by it."

"But there are consequences," Elkhart noted. "He hurt me, and in doing so, he hurt his friendship with me."

"Yeah," Merlin agreed. "Honestly, I'm pretty pissed at him as well. How about we go back to your room? It's a little chilly tonight."

Elkhart buried his face in his knees, and Merlin could hear a somewhat muffled voice. "Can I just… sit here for a while? But don't go, okay?"

Merlin nodded, and they both sat in silence for about a minute. Then Merlin spoke up. "You know, since you told me a secret of yours, can I tell you a secret of mine?"

Elkhart raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"Umm…" Merlin looked away for a moment, then back at Elkhart. "…I actually kind of do have a crush on you."

Elkhart chuckled. "Well, then I guess they were right to an extent. I believe their conclusion was that it was mutual."

"Yeah, I suppose so."

Elkhart stared up at the underside of the bridge. "Well, I never considered being in a relationship, but I did kind of enjoy tonight's 'date'."

Merlin smiled at this. "Well, I honestly kind of enjoyed it as well."

"And honestly, I think if I were to be in a relationship like that, I'd want it to be with you." Elkhart looked over at Merlin. "So what do you say?"

"About what?"

Elkhart raised an eyebrow as if to say "seriously?".

"Ah, right. Well… sure! If you're okay with it."

Elkhart smiled, and they both sat under the bridge together for a few more minutes in complete silence.

Finally, Merlin stood up. "Well, I guess we should be getting to bed. Remember, the final showdown is tomorrow."

Elkhart nodded and stood up. "See you tomorrow. And while we may have just decided to be a couple, we are enemies tomorrow." He waved and headed towards his hotel, while Merlin headed towards his.

* * *

 **I will admit that was a pretty long chapter. Also, I did not mean for that one misunderstanding to escalate to such a significant degree, or take up an entire chapter. Also, the deal with Elkhart is, he ended up being very different from how I introduced him, even going so far as to discuss things with my queer friends for advice on such a character coming out in the middle of a story. But overall, I liked how it turned out, and as always, I hope you enjoyed!**


	37. GMG Arc - Made of Water

"Gooood morning! And welcome to the final day of the Grand Magic Games! I'm your emcee, Chapati Rola, providing commentary alongside the owner of 8-island restaurant, Yajima-san."

"A pleasure as always, Chapati-san."

"And today, for the final showdown, our guest speaker is none other than our mascot: Mato the pumpkin!"

"It's great to be here-kabo!"

"And now for the rankings so far. In eighth place, with rotten luck as compared to their past performance, with seven points, we have Lamia Scale. In seventh place, with eighteen points, we have Crime Sorcier. In sixth place, with thirty-three points: Fairy Tail A Team. In fifth place, with thirty-seven points, we have Fairy Tail B Team. In fourth place, with forty-four points: Sabertooth B Team. In third place, with forty-five points: Sabertooth A Team! In second place, having gotten surprisingly far for a band of young, inexperienced wizards, at fifty-four points: Dragon King!"

The crowd cheered.

"And in first place, having not done too well in the contest part, but with plenty of points from the battle part, at a grand total of fifty-eight points, we have Hallowguard!"

The crowd continued to cheer, having mostly forgiven the guild for the incident four days ago.

"Now, as many of you already know, the final day of the Grand Magic Games is special. Unlike the other days, we do not do a contest or battle part, but rather, a final showdown. Now usually, we have all of the city folk clear out so that these mages can use the entire city of Crocus as their battleground. However, this year, we were able to shift the stadium and the contestants into their own pocket dimension which is identical to the normal one, except that the city is empty. The city folk will be able to see what is going on in this pocket dimension in the form of holographic images, which should be quite the spectacle. Now, may all eight teams please enter the arena?"

For the most part, all eight teams were the same as at the beginning. However, Wendy had been replaced by Juvia, as Wendy was back at the infirmary healing William. Mau had been replaced by another, unfamiliar Hallowguard mage – androgenous and relatively short, with short, pink hair.

* * *

"Good thing you were back on time, Shay," Utkarsh remarked.

"Why did you kick Mau off the team again?"

"He went too far," Utkarsh replied. "He continued to beat up an opponent who had already lost, while knowing she was crippled. He was about to kill her, and he knew and didn't care. And now her guild is furious with us for good reason."

Shay nodded in agreement. "That is a good reason."

* * *

"Each member of a team defeated earns their opponent one point, except for the secretly selected leader of the team, which is five points. That's a total of seventy-two points, sixty-three of which could hypothetically be earned by any one team. And now, each team leader has secretly chosen a location within Crocus where they and their team will be teleported. After that, the final showdown will begin. And now: let the final battle begin!"

The eight teams dematerialized, and a set of LacrimaVision displays popped up around the arena, showing their various locations.

* * *

"Off I go!" Akane sprouted his wings, then stopped and twisted around to look at them. He sighed in disappointment to discover that they still resembled those of Acnologia. Then he shook his head and shot off.

Hisoka started forward.

"Careful, Hisoka," Nashi warned.

Hisoka nodded. "I won't try flying."

"I still think this was a bad idea."

"Thomas doesn't fight, and William's still recovering," Hisoka replied. "This was the only choice." He ran off, wincing in pain as he went.

* * *

Gray rushed into the town square nearly running straight into Lyon.

"It's been far too long, Gray," Lyon greeted.

"Yeah," Gray agreed. "Whadaya say we rough each other up a bit?"

Lyon grinned. "My pleasure, fellow disciple of Ur."

"Icemake: Cannon!"

"Icemake: Dragon!"

Gray's cannon fired at Lyon, punching through his dragon and barely giving Lyon enough time to dodge.

"Icemake: Eagle!" Lyon sent an ice eagle at Gray.

"Icemake: Lance!" Gray shattered the eagle.

Suddenly, a barrage of pink arcane blades passed through both Lyon and Gray, causing them to both experience sudden stabbing pains and fall unconscious.

Meredy jumped down from the rooftop. "Two points for me." She looked over at a LacrimaVision floating above the street. "Okay, never mind. It seems Lyon was a team leader, so six points." Suddenly, some sort of shot hit the back of her head. Her eyes briefly widened, and she dropped to the ground, unconscious.

"And five more points for me," Wally added. "I guess you beating me before was just a fluke, like me losing my sense of dandy." He looked around. "Now for my next target…"

* * *

Utkarsh walked along the empty street, listening. "This is unsettling," he commented to himself. "It's usually only this quiet at night." He perked up as he sensed something, alongside hearing a sort of distortion-like sound. He leaped out of the way of an explosion, then rolled out the fall and jumped to his feet, making eye contact with Minerva.

"Not bad," Minerva congratulated. She tried to catch Utkarsh in one of her imprisonment spheres, but he kept leaping out of the way before they could fully form.

"Not gonna work," Utkarsh taunted. "What I lack in magic, I make up with my physical abilities. I've trained everything – my strength, my agility, my stamina – I could do this all day." He charged towards Minerva. "You, on the other hand, have a limited reserve of magic."

Minerva prepared a spacial explosion in her hand. As she detonated it, Utkarsh leaped out of the way, but still took some of the impact to his right side. He spun around, stepping behind Minerva and preparing a strike. Suddenly, her form shimmered and he found himself in her former location. He reacted quickly by grabbing where he remembered his arm being, yanking Minerva forward and knocking her off balance. Minerva then switched places with him again, and Utkarsh found himself plummeting and spinning towards the ground. He threw out his hand to stop himself, then rolled a bit and twisted to his feet, clutching the spot where Minerva had hit him.

"You were saying?" inquired Minerva.

Utkarsh grinned. "This should be fun."

* * *

Hisoka grunted in pain as he limped along the street. "Okay, maybe Thomas would have been a better idea." He leaned against a nearby house. "I haven't even fought anyone yet, and I'm having trouble walking for too long."

"And your timing for giving out couldn't have been worse."

Hisoka's eyes widened, and he looked at a house across the street from him to see Juvia sitting on the roof. "Well, then."

Juvia jumped down from the roof. "Juvia has wondered ever since you joined the guild how this might turn out."

"I admit, this could get interesting." Hisoka stood up, ignoring the pain.

Juvia grinned. "Juvia absolutely agrees. Water Nebula!" Columns of water welled up out of thin air and blasted around Hisoka.

Hisoka stood in place as the water flowed around him. "Is that the best you can do?" he inquired. He opened his mouth and sucked in the water, causing it to disappear. He wiped his mouth. "Thanks for the meal." Suddenly, he doubled over as intense pain shot through his stomach. "Dammit… I guess… I shouldn't do that… too much…"

"Water Jigsaw!" Juvia turned herself into a cluster of water trails whipping about. Then she shot towards Hisoka.

"Not gonna work," Hisoka pointed out as Juvia flowed around him without affecting him. "I can sidestep the flow of water in such a way that it doesn't affect me. That may be a problem, since you are made of water."

Juvia _tsked_ in annoyance and returned to her normal form some distance from Hisoka.

"Now it's my turn." Hisoka brought his arms up, struggling to ignore the pain from moving those muscles. "Kawatatsu no Yokugeki!" A pair of water tendrils whipped towards Juvia, who waved her hand. Suddenly, the water tendrils wrapped around Hisoka and threw him against a building.

"I would have thrown you harder, but I don't want to kill you," Juvia noted.

"Sheesh… that was like when Romeo was controlling Nashi's flames…"

"Totomaru must have taught him that move," Juvia deduced. "Water Jigsaw!" She once again turned into water and shot towards Hisoka.

This time, Hisoka opened his mouth. Juvia's eyes widened as she realized what Hisoka was about to do. Before Juvia could react, Hisoka made contact with her water form and sucked her in.

As Hisoka finished up, he wiped his mouth. "Well, that was fun." Then he dropped to his knees, clutching his side in pain. "Okay, bad idea." His face twisted. "Normal water was bad enough, but eating sentient water in this condition is just stupid."

* * *

Chapati, Yajima and Mato stared at the LacrimaVision, their eyes and mouths wide open out of pure shock. Most of the spectators were also like this, as well as the residents of the city who had either been near the location of the fight or near a LacrimaVision display.

People like Erza, on the other hand, were more concerned than shocked. "Juvia had better not be dead. I'm afraid I can't let him back into the guild if he killed one of our members."

"I don't think he's that stupid," Jellal replied. "He certainly seems to be a good person. And he took that blade to prevent someone else from being murdered. It doesn't match his temperament."

Erza nodded. "I certainly hope so."

"I don't think Juvia's dead," William replied. "When a dragonslayer consumes a sentient being made of their element, eating that sentient being will assimilate them into their magic system. Juvia's still alive in there, and Hisoka can reconstruct her body whenever he likes. He'd just have to spit out some of his water mixed with her consciousness. Although, Juvia might come out a bit drained on energy and magic. But she'll be fine within a few hours."

Erza stared at William, impressed. "When did you read so much about dragonslayer magic?"

"Well, for one thing, I am a dragonslayer, if you recall," William pointed out. "Also, I've had plenty of time to read while I was recovering."

Levy chuckled in amusement. "Of course that was what you were doing. You're my kid."

* * *

Elkhart stopped and listened. Then he leaped out of the way as the area where he had been standing swelled and burst into fragments. He twisted himself around in midair and landed on his feet, skidding backwards slightly as he faced Gildarts.

"Nice save."

Elkhart grinned. "Well, then, now we can fight without the distraction of Nashi and Emma's antics." He unleashed a stream of lightning from his hands, but was blocked by another spray of debris from Gildarts.

"Also, there's no time limit, so…" Gildarts's eyes widened suddenly as something struck him on the back of the head. At first, the metal arm which had struck Gildarts materialized, then Nashi's entire body. Gildarts crumpled to the ground, unconscious.

"That gate of the snake comes in handy," Nashi mused.

"True," Elkhart acknowledged. "However, now you're up against me."

Nashi grinned. "No, I'm a distraction for you."

Elkhart raised an eyebrow, when suddenly, an aluminum pole slammed into his head, knocking him out.

Nashi looked to the side as Merlin approached her from the shadows. "Good work." She raised a hand for a high five.

Merlin returned the gesture, and their hands smacked together. "If my intuition is right, and they're both team leaders, then that was ten points in one go." He looked up at the LacrimaVision display. "Yep."

"Nice! Okay, now I'm going to go find Hisoka to make sure he hasn't overexerted himself."

Merlin nodded, and Nashi turned and ran off.

* * *

Utkarsh stared Minerva, breathing heavily, as he thought about the pattern with which she used her territory magic. _Okay, if I time it just perfectly…_

"What's the matter?" Minerva inquired. "Have you met your match?"

"Would you shut up and let me think?"

"You're asking your opponent to do something that would help you?"

"Whatever, just…" Utkarsh took a deep breath, then ran towards Minerva. He watched as her form started to shimmer, then, instead of putting the next foot forward, he dug it into the ground, tripping himself, then throwing his hands behind him as the view around him shimmered, and he suddenly found himself watching a surprised Minerva fall face-first into the ground at his feet. He watched as Minerva tried to move, but was in too much pain. "Yeah, that's what happens when you're unable to throw out your hands to stop yourself. All this fighting, and it turned out I didn't have to touch you." He chuckled to himself and walked off.

* * *

Jonah stared at Shay. "Nice seeing you again."

Shay nodded. "It's been what, a year and a half?"

"Roughly," Jonah agreed. "Personally, I'm interested to see how things have changed since our last match."

Shay raised a hand, causing a few metal spheres to float out of their bag. "Well, for one thing, I can control multiple spheres at once now."

Jonah grinned. "And I can cast a few more spells."

"Nice. Can I see some?"

"Certainly!" Jonah replied enthusiastically. His hands began glowing, and he swiped at Shay, causing a pair of light rays to engulf his opponent and knock them back. "What do you think of that?"

Shay got up and dusted themself off. "Not bad." They looked around and saw their metal spheres lying on the ground, then raised them again, causing them to circle around their hand and then shoot towards Jonah, bludgeoning him repeatedly.

Jonah grunted in pain. "Meteor!" He shot up into the air, flying around high in the sky for a few seconds, then dove towards Shay, who then shot the metal spheres straight at him. Jonah dodged them as they came up, but was struck from behind as they came back down more quickly than expected. He crashed to the ground, lying there for about ten seconds, then shakily got to his feet. "N-Nicely done…"

Shay nodded. "I guess we've both been practicing."

"Grand Chariot!"

Shay looked up, and their eyes widened as seven magic circles arranged like the Big Dipper constellation started glowing in the sky. "I forgot you had that one." Hundreds of tiny meteorites shot down and pummeled Shay.

* * *

Hisoka limped along the street, thankful that nobody else had shown up to attack him. He grunted in pain and clutched his side. Then he thought back to his conversation with Henri.

* * *

" _I don't want you going out there," Henri commanded. "You're still recovering."_

" _I can still fight!" Hisoka snapped. "Natsu once said, 'if you can move, you can stand, and if you stand, you can fight'. I can still walk, and I still have my magic."_

" _But you can barely walk more than five minutes. And that's just normal walking. We're talking about maneuvering around in the heat of combat. I'm afraid I can't let you."_

 _Hisoka's eyes narrowed. "I don't need you making all of my decisions for me. I'm not twelve years old anymore. And I can still fight. Don't worry. I won't get myself killed."_

" _Yes, I know that is improbable. But what about making your injuries worse? Despite your ability, that's not going to fully heal. You need to let it do all the healing it can."_

" _I understand."_

" _Let Thomas do it."_

" _I'm sorry, but healing magic alone won't cut it, especially if he can't heal himself."_

" _Hisoka, look…"_

" _No. Listen, Henri. I know full well that this will stunt my recovery, and that's my choice. I promise I won't get myself killed, and after this, the only physically active thing I'll do before I recover is attend the Ball." He turned towards the tunnel exit. "Besides," he continued as he walked, "how the hell am I supposed to fight well if I can't sustain a few injuries?"_

" _Hisoka…" Henri trailed off as she watched Hisoka join the rest of the team. She sighed. "There's really no changing your mind, is there?" She raised her paw with the backwards L-sign. "Do your best, Hisoka."_

* * *

Hisoka pressed his back against a building and slid down into a sitting position, groaning as he did. "Maybe Thomas would have been a better idea," he said to himself. "I should have listened to you, Henri." He stared blankly at the sky and reconsidered what he had just said. "No. I have to do this. If I can fight through these injuries, I can fight through pretty much anything."

"You look pathetic."

Hisoka rested his eyes on his pink-haired teammate. "Hey, Nashi. How's it been going with you?"

Nashi shrugged. "Well, for one thing, Merlin and I were able to take down Elkhart and Gildarts."

Hisoka's eyes widened. "Seriously? You could never take those two in a fight. Did you catch them in the middle of fighting each other or something?"

"Actually, that's exactly what it was," Nashi confirmed. "It was Merlin's idea. I turned invisible and knocked out Gildarts from behind. Then, while I distracted Elkhart, Merlin got _him_ from behind."

Hisoka chuckled. "Well, nicely done… nngh!" He held a hand to his side.

Nashi looked at the spot of his wound, then knelt down as she saw how bad it was. "Um, Hisoka… there's a large bloodstain on your coat."

Hisoka held up the hand he had to his side and realized what Nashi was talking about. His hand was now covered in blood. He looked down and saw the bloodstain.

Nashi knelt and placed a hand on the location of the wound, and the horse symbol on her other arm started glowing. Flames wrapped around Hisoka's torso, not burning him, but giving off a warm feeling and easing the pain. Then the flames dispersed, and Nashi stood up. "It's not any more effective than your magic or Wendy's magic, but it should help. You must have reopened it from all the physical activity."

Hisoka nodded. "Juvia was pretty tough." He stood up. It still hurt, but not as much as before.

"You fought Juvia?"

"Yeah. I defeated her in a pretty funny way, actually."

"Mm."

Hisoka tilted his head curiously. "Did you want to say something?"

"Not particularly. Just thinking about stuff… the adventures we've had, the consequences…" she looked down at her right arm, clenching and unclenching the fist and causing the sound of metal parts clinking together. Then she looked down at the bloodstain on Hisoka's trenchcoat. "You know, I think Thomas would have been a better idea."

Hisoka nodded. "I was actually beginning to think that myself. He can't fight, but he's in good condition to ensure that he doesn't have to. And I still can't fly."

Nashi sighed. "Well, there's nothing we can do now. Let's just win these games."

Hisoka grinned. "Absolutely!"

Nashi held out a hand. "We're in this together."

Hisoka took Nashi's hand gratefully. "Let's do this, Rika!"

"Rika?"

The two dragonslayers turned in the direction of the sudden third voice. Nashi's eyes widened in surprise.

"Hiromi…"

Hiromi raised a charged, inflamed hand, grinning. "It's cute that you have a nickname for my sister," he commented to Hisoka. Then he looked at Nashi. "Let's do this, Onei-chan."

Nashi huffed in annoyance, then grinned back at Hiromi and raised a flame-engulfed metal fist. "Gladly, little brother."

* * *

 **Well, I hope you find the dirty trick Hisoka pulled as amusing as I did. Don't worry, Juvia will be fine. Hope you enjoyed!**


	38. GMG Arc - Young Salamanders

"Ladies and gentlemen," Chapati announced, "we are about to witness a battle between Nashi and Hiromi, the son and daughter of Natsu 'Salamander' Dragneel! A battle between brother and sister dragonslayers. Nashi has her teammate with her, but Hiromi has his double dragon mode! We will keep a few LacrimaVisions focused on the other fights around the city, but for now, the main interest seems to be in this battle!"

* * *

Shay grinned at Jonah. "Nicely done." They stumbled a bit, but maintained their footing.

"Thanks," Jonah replied with a bit of a stagger himself. "You, too."

Shay spun around, causing the spheres to fly at Jonah's feet. Jonah stepped out of the way, but the spheres swung back around, slamming into his legs and knocking him off his feet. Then they battered him until Shay was sure he was down. Then Shay returned the spheres to their container and walked off, taking a casual glance at the LacrimaVision. "Five points for me."

* * *

"Raienryuu no Houkou!"

As Hiromi unleashed his breath weapon, Nashi dove towards Hisoka, moving both herself and him out of the way. "Sorry," she said as Hisoka yelped in pain. "Gate of the tiger, maintain my balance: Hǔ!" She regained her balance, setting Hisoka on his feet. "Gate of the Rabbit, grant me speed: Tù!" She shot towards Hiromi, slamming into him with incredible force. "Karyuu no Tekken!" A flaming metal fist slammed into Hiromi, sending him sprawling about twenty meters away.

"Careful, Nashi!" Hisoka warned. "The further you enhance your abilities, the faster it uses up your magic."

"I know," Nashi reassured.

Hiromi staggered to his feet, with less damage than he should have taken from Nashi's attack. "Unfortunately for you, flames can't hurt me. Now, with you and lightning, it's a different story. Raienryuu no Naginata!" This time, the attack was too fast even for Nashi to dodge, as a harpoon of flaming lightning struck Nashi, stunning her as she fell.

"Nashi!" Hisoka limped towards Nashi, clutching his side as he went.

"Raging Firebolt!" Hiromi extended a hand towards Hisoka, who had little time to react as the massive projectile engulfed his body. "You think I wasn't paying mind to you? You're both my opponents."

"Well, you were aware of my presence, just not what I was doing."

Hiromi's eyes widened as the fireball cleared, revealing a mildly stunned Hisoka with steam rising off of his body. "What the hell…?"

"I soaked myself in water, knowing you might attack me," Hisoka explained. "The water prevented your flames from burning me. As for your lightning, I've had practice with that kind of thing. Kawatatsu no Youkugeki!" He swiped a single arm at Hiromi as he ran over to Nashi, causing a tendril of water to smack Hiromi. He then knelt next to the dazed dragonslayer and healed her.

Nashi regained her bearings and sat up. "Thanks, Hisoka."

"Oh, I should probably let Juvia out," Hisoka remembered. He spit out some water roughly the size of a human, which then formed into an unconscious Juvia lying on the ground. "I got plenty of magic out of her."

Hiromi and Nashi both stared in shock at what had just happened, and at the sight of Juvia lying on the ground.

"Um… Hisoka?"

Hisoka looked over at Nashi. "Yes?"

"When you, uh… said you defeated Juvia in a funny way…"

"Oh, yeah! I ate Juvia."

"You what?!" Hiromi asked incredulously.

"I ate Juvia," Hisoka repeated. "Don't worry. I just sapped all of her magic. She'll be fine."

Nashi continued to stare at Juvia. "But how did you…?"

"She's made of water," Hisoka explained. "I eat water, remember?"

"Right…" Nashi looked up at Hiromi. "Uh… I guess we should continue?"

Hiromi inhaled out of confirmation. "Raienryuu no Houkou!" He released his breath weapon directly at Nashi, who didn't even try to dodge as the flames and lightning engulfed her.

Hisoka stared wide-eyed, not even trying to say anything as he knew it was too late. Then his fear turned to surprise as the torrent cleared to reveal Nashi still standing there, her metal arm raised over her face and glowing red, electricity arcing all over her body.

"I figured I could do it," Nashi said to Hiromi as she lowered her arm. "After all, dad can do it, and you can't _not_ do it. But your lightning is combined with your flames, which I can't eat, so I had to separate it with something more conductive than my body." Nashi tapped her right arm, causing electricity to arc around the spot where she tapped it.

"Wait… what?" Hiromi took a step back out of surprise.

Nashi took a preparatory stance. "Double element mode: Lightning-Flame Dragon!" Her entire body burst into flames and began arcing with electricity. Her hair and scarf billowed up from the hot air, and her eyes took on a yellowish-white glow.

The look of shock on Hiromi's face turned to a grin. "Well, this should be a good challenge."

Hisoka stood there, frozen for a moment, trying to process what was happening. Then he snapped to attention as Hiromi burst into electrified flames. He partially lifted Juvia and dragged her to safety, his face twisting in pain as the muscles around his stab wound moved. He came to a stop to see Nashi and Hiromi now much further away. _Not far enough,_ he thought. _This is two double dragon modes fighting each other. The destruction will be insane._ He continued to drag Juvia further away.

"Raienryuu no Agito!" Nashi clasped her hands together and charged towards Hiromi, bringing her clasped fists down.

Hiromi ducked out of the way. "Raienryuu no Tekken!" He brought a hand up into Nashi's stomach, sending her falling back and landing on her butt on the cobblestone. He leaped into the air, ready to land on top of Nashi. "Raienryuu no Saigeki!" He concentrated his elements to his feet.

"Raienryuu no Kagizume!" Nashi brought her foot up, connecting with Hiromi's foot and knocking him off balance. The two of them scrambled to their feet and each brought a pair of electrified flame-engulfed fists together.

"Raienryuu no Kouen!"

* * *

The commentators stared in shock.

"Um… we're not entirely sure what happened," Chapati announced. "That explosion knocked out the LacrimaVision feed."

"As expected of the children of Salamander," Yajima said. "They are now both using the same double dragon mode as their father. I don't believe we will be able to view this fight."

Nero rushed into the commentators' stand. "Chapati-san, there are reports of people feeling a bit of the heat from some explosions, and some long-haired individuals are feeling the effects of static electricity."

Chapati looked at Nero in surprise. "It's that powerful…?" He quickly turned back to the mic. "There seem to be reports of people near this fight not only seeing it, but feeling the magic involved to some degree. The barrier to the pocket dimension should render this effect harmless, but it truly is amazing that their attacks are this powerful!"

* * *

Shay looked at the distant explosion with interest. "They must be a bold pair to use that much magic when they know they'll be in multiple fights."

"That's Nashi for you."

Shay turned to see a scarlet-haired, muscular young man. "Akane Skofnung of Dragon King, right? You're the one who went mad in the Nightmare contest."

Akane clutched his fists and gritted his teeth. "Don't remind me of that."

"Sorry," Shay apologized. "I know it wasn't your fault."

Akane stared at the ground. "I'm not so sure about that myself."

"You can't blame yourself for a post-trauma relapse." Shay held out a hand. "Shay Faucher of Hallowguard. Nice to meet you."

"You don't know anything about me," Akane glowered, continuing to stand there.

"That Redfox girl… William, right?"

Akane looked up at Shay. "What of her?"

Shay smiled warmly. "You care deeply about her, don't you?"

"Well, yeah… kind of… not in that way, though…"

"I didn't mean in 'that' way. What I mean is, that nightmare of her dying… of course you can't be blamed for losing control. Although I am curious as to what happened in the past."

"What do you mean?"

"That nightmare must have resembled something that happened in the past. That's why you had a post-trauma attack. Something happened that resembled the events of that nightmare."

Akane stared blankly at Shay then slowly nodded and looked solemnly at the ground. "Will was crushed by a dragon six months ago. We were barely able to prevent her from dying, and she'll never make a full recovery."

Shay frowned. "I'm sorry."

Akane shook his head. "It's not your fault. I could normally get over it, and there were even moments yesterday when I could just feel alright, but… what if I become a danger to her?"

"That won't happen," Shay reassured. "That's your instinct to protect her kicking in, right?"

"It's not that, it's…" Akane broke off as he considered what he was about to say. Then his breath wavered. "…I'm not ready to tell you… I know a bunch of my friends have already found out and accepted it, but… I can't tell you, okay?"

Shay nodded. "I understand." They looked around absentmindedly. "You know, I don't really want to fight you now. I'll get back to you later."

Akane stood and watched as Shay walked off, then dropped into a cross-legged sitting position, thinking about everything that had happened in the last six months… watching William get crushed… caring for her while knowing she could never fully recover… finding out who his father was… watching Mau try and kill William with _his_ element… stabbing his best friend… those last two filled him with anger, both at Mau and at himself. He looked up at the sky, guessing the direction Edolas was in. "Am I becoming more like you, Acnologia?" He thought back to how his wings had changed… why had they done that, anyway? Was it the realization of being related to Acnologia? No… then his wings would have been different as soon as he got back from Edolas. He had even traveled to the war and back without his wings changing. He had even flown alongside Torden with his normal batlike wings. It had something to do with that nightmare… it must have had some lasting effect on him…

"You alright?"

Akane leaped to his feet, spinning around and throwing a projectile of crimson energy, then saw that it was Merlin, who barely dodged as it hit a building behind him.

"Careful. You've seemed a bit on edge lately. You want to tell me what's wrong?"

"Don't pretend you don't know," Akane retorted, turning his back.

"Well, it could be about Will, or Hisoka, or Acnologia…"

"It's everything, alright?!" Akane snapped, spinning back around to face Merlin, who continued to stand there with a straight face. "I can't seem to protect anyone. If anything, I'm a danger to those around me. And that nightmare… it changed something. I'm afraid. What if I'm becoming more like Acnologia? What if eventually, nobody is safe around…"

"Your friends know the truth!" Merlin snapped. "They know your parentage, they know you watched Will get crushed, and they know that you weren't fully in control there?"

"I could become as dangerous as he was!" Akane protested. "That nightmare had a lasting effect on me." He spread his wings so as to prove his point. "And it's not just my wings. I _feel_ different – like I might be going mad. If I don't do something, I'll end up hurting someone else, like Will!"

"No, you won't! There's a reason Will feels safe around you – safe enough to fall asleep in your arms."

Akane's face turned pink in embarrassment.

"I'm not teasing you this time. My point is, there's a reason why Will feels that safe around you. Why Hisoka forgave you so readily. In both of the recent instances in which you nearly killed someone, it was to protect Will. You think that's you being dangerous?"

"I nearly killed Hisoka," Akane protested. "That was how far I went. I…"

"You weren't even aiming for Hisoka!" Merlin bellowed. "The only reason you hit him was because he deliberately jumped into the way of your attack. And don't you go comparing yourself to Acnologia. You have something Acnologia didn't have. Acnologia didn't become dangerous until after his friends and family had been killed by dragons. That was when he went on a revenge quest. We're still around, and we don't plan on going anywhere. Got it? You can call yourself a monster all you like, but you're a monster that protects people. The only people you should consider yourself to be a danger to are your enemies. Because you will protect your friends no matter what. That's what I see in you. That's what Will, Hisoka, and all of the others see in you!"

Akane stood there, not really knowing how to respond.

Merlin extended a hand towards Akane. "Come on. You want to feel better? Fight alongside your friends like you did in the war."

Akane nodded, then took Merlin's hand.

"Let's go." Merlin took off, with Akane close behind. "I'm picking up a familiar smell, and I think we can take them if we work together."

"It's not Elkhart, is it?"

Merlin laughed. "No way. We could never take him in a fair fight. Nashi and I already knocked out him and Gildarts from behind."

Akane's eyes darted towards Merlin, widening in surprise, then went back to the direction he was running. "Now that's pretty reckless. I'm guessing that was Nashi's idea?"

"She's like her dad: more powerful than she seems and clever when you least expect it."

They rounded a corner and found themselves standing before Romeo and Asuka.

* * *

Hisoka laid Juvia down next to the canal. Juvia opened her eyes and tried to get up, then found herself unable to move. "That was a dirty trick…"

Hisoka shrugged. "It worked. Don't worry. A good night's rest and you should be good as new."

Juvia smiled. "Good job… you may be ready… for that thing… you were talking about…"

Hisoka was confused for a second, then realized what Juvia was talking about and shook his head. "This is an entire continent of dragons we're talking about."

"Well, then, I will have you know that even Acnologia couldn't do that. You have a long way to go, and I don't think your lifespan will be long enough."

"My healing magic theoretically should slow down my aging significantly. It doesn't slow down the rate at which I mature – I am seventeen, and as you can see, I look seventeen – but I should have several centuries if I need it."

"Wendy never mentioned anything like that with her magic."

"I don't really know much about sky dragon healing magic versus river dragon healing magic. I know they are very different, and there's also a lot that I don't know, and probably a lot that she doesn't know." Hisoka looked in the direction they had come from to see another gigantic explosion. Despite the distance, he could still feel intense heat radiating from it. Then he turned back to Juvia. "Now, that said, I don't think I'll have anywhere near that long if I really want to save them." He stood up. "Just stay put. The medical team should be here soon." He turned and headed back towards the fight.

"Hisoka!"

Hisoka turned back momentarily.

"Good job. That was a clever move you pulled there. With that kind of wit, you're going to go far."

Hisoka nodded, then turned and limped towards the fight.

* * *

Eallesander examined the ruins of the Eclipse gate, an uneasy feeling forming within them.

"Something special to you about this place?"

Eallesander whipped around to discover Emma standing behind them.

"You seemed to be regarding it with familiarity, and you're looking kind of uneasy."

Eallesander looked back at the ruins and shrugged. "Well, I am curious as to why they still have this rubble around."

"A monument or something," Emma replied. "I'm not entirely certain, but it was something about wanting to remember it."

Eallesander nodded understandingly, then shifted nervously. "Despite its destruction, though, I don't think all of its magic is gone."

"What makes you say that?"

Eallesander tensed up, not sure how to respond. Sure, they had become close friends with Emma, but they also had Sting, Rogue and Hiromi as their adoptive family, and they hadn't told any of them. "I… well…"

"Hm?"

"Because I otherwise wouldn't be here."

Emma's eyes widened with curiosity. "Why is that?"

Eallesander shook their head. "I-I can't say. I've already said more than I'm comfortable with."

"I see."

"But enough of that…" Eallesander whipped around and streaked towards Emma. "Let's fight!"

Emma grinned as she dodged the sudden attack, her reaction time not quick enough for anything else. "Now that's what I like to hear!"

* * *

Hisoka slowly moved toward Nashi and Hiromi, amazed at how unrecognizable the landscape was as compared to before the fight had begun. Everything within about fifty yards had turned into a smooth-floored crater, probably by the stone melting and hardening again. He continued to hold up his water shield and squinted, directing his gaze at the ground as blinding explosions continued to blossom around him. "Nashi!" he shouted at the top of his lungs, then broke into a fit of coughing as the shouting put stress on his injured lung. His water shield dropped, and he quickly soaked himself as he was engulfed in another bout of crossfire. As the flames cleared, he felt the lightning coarse through his body and was a bit dazed. "I think we should work together!"

Nashi glanced over at her friend, who was now steaming from Hiromi's attack, then turned her attention back to her brother. "Sorry, but no! He's my brother, and I'm going to defeat him on my own!"

"You're immune to each other's attacks!" Hisoka shouted once more. "You're just going to use up all of your magic, and then you won't be able to continue in the Games."

"You stay out of this!" Hiromi snapped. "This is between me and my sister."

"And Nashi is my friend!"

"What does that have to do with it?" Nashi demanded. "I have my friends stay out of my business all the time."

"Remember what you said back in the Eastern temple!"

Nashi's eyes darted momentarily to Hisoka, but she continued to focus on the fight. "That doesn't even apply outside of life-or-death situations!"

"It does, in a way. Personally, I'd like to be of as much help to my friends as I can."

"Then stay out of this when I tell you to."

Hisoka stared longingly at Nashi, upset and slightly offended by this. He sat down and put up a water shield. "I will watch the fight from here."

"That's fine. Raienryuu no Tekken!" She swung an element-engulfed fist at Hiromi, knocking him back.

"But one more thing I'd like to say, that I think might be of help to you: remember when I first asked you to dance."

Hiromi got up from his prone position and stared at Nashi. "Wait… you learned to dance?"

Nashi's face turned the color of her hair as she tensed up in embarrassment.

"Just remember what I said back then!" Hisoka repeated.

Nashi took a deep breath, and her face returned to its normal color. "It can help greatly with any form of elemental magic…" She took an evasive stance, ready to move in practically any direction necessary. "…especially slayer types." She tried imagining a song playing in her head, getting a feel for the beat to her imaginary music. She began to step in place, already on her feet for any maneuver.

"Raienryuu no Nenshou Kousen!" Hiromi sent a linear blast of lightning and flame at Nashi, who spun out of the way. "Raienryuu no Tekken!" Hiromi threw a fist at his sister, who once again sidestepped it, grabbing Hiromi's arm and swinging him around, eventually letting go and sending him stumbling forward.

"Raienryuu no Kagizume!" Nashi intercepted Hiromi's movement with a propelled kick to the back.

Hiromi turned, clearly winded, but still standing. He inhaled painfully. "Raienryuu no Houkou!" he unleashed his breath weapon towards Nashi.

This time, Nashi dropped and rolled underneath a surprised Hiromi. "Raienryuu no Houkou!" She completely engulfed her brother, who was sent flying high into the air. He began to slow his fall, but was intercepted by Nashi, who leaped up and raised her arms. "Metsuryuu Ogi: Guren Bakuraijin!" She brought both arms down toward Hiromi and unleashed a swirling vortex of the two elements, which sent Hiromi slamming into the ground. Nashi landed on her feet next to the now-incapacitated Hiromi, then dropped her double dragon mode. "If your movements are more fluid, and sometimes if they're more rhythmic, your timing and the effect of your hits are greatly improved."

* * *

Chapati watched as the static on the LacrimaVision display shimmered into a distinct image, revealing Nashi standing victorious over her brother. A grin crossed his face.

"Nashi wins-kabo!" Mato shouted.

"My dear spectators," Chapati announced, "Dragon King's Nashi Heartfilia has just risen victorious over her younger brother! This is why you shouldn't bet against your older sister."

A large portion of the audience laughed at Chapati's joke.

* * *

"She must have done something reckless," William said as she watched the LacrimaVision. "That's Nashi for you."

"And once again, Hisoka has overexerted himself," Porlyusica added.

"You can tell on the screen?"

Porlyusica nodded. "He is _exactly_ like his uncle. Treating his injuries will be an absolute nightmare."

Wendy stepped into the room, carrying a few snacks. "I'm back! What did I miss?"

"Nashi took down Hiromi," William replied as Wendy handed her a bag of crisps. "She managed to activate her own lightning-flame dragon mode."

"Wow." Wendy popped a pretzel into her mouth. "She's just like her dad."

"Well, I guess Dragon King is going to kick everyone's butts."

Wendy chuckled as the screen switched between various encounters. "That would indeed be impressive."

* * *

 **So, yeah. I don't really have much to say regarding this chapter. A bit of Merlin consoling Akane, a bit of foreshadowing of stuff… and, of course, an epic fight. Well, hope you enjoyed!**


	39. GMG Arc - Crimson Lotus

The two pairs of mages stared each other down; Romeo and Asuka versus Akane and Merlin.

"Think we can take these two?" asked Merlin.

"If we're smart or lucky," Akane replied, "though maybe we'll need both."

"Aw, but where's the fun in that?"

The four mages turned and were surprised to see Natsu and Lucy walking up to them.

"Now, with a three-way battle, there's pretty much no predicting which way the tides will turn," Natsu continued.

Romeo scratched his head. "Well, to be fair, Natsu-nii, I've never beaten you in a fight, and that would be rather lovely."

Asuka sighed. "Well, we're all here now, and we're kind of supposed to fight each other."

"Fair enough," agreed Lucy. She moved a hand to her keys.

"Shinkuryuu no Kenkaku!" Akane surged toward Lucy, engulfing himself in crimson energy.

"Regulus block!" Lucy's clothes changed to her star dress of Leo, she brought up a glowing hand, skidding backwards a few meters as Akane slammed into it, but otherwise unaffected. She yelped in surprise as the sphere of light began to crack, and quickly withdrew her hand.

Akane stumbled forward, but managed to catch himself and turned to face Lucy. "My magic can destroy pretty much anything."

"Karyuu no Tekken!" Natsu knocked Akane aside with a flaming fist. "Hands off of my wife!"

"Tangusutenryuukon!" A tungsten pole slammed into Natsu from behind, knocking him into Lucy and sending the couple tumbling to the ground.

"All's fair in a three-way battle!" declared Merlin, right before tensing up from electrical shock and falling to the ground.

"I very much agree," Asuka said as she twirled her guns.

"Nice one, Asuka!" Romeo did a flame-assisted leap over the heads of Asuka, Merlin and Akane to land in front of Natsu, who was standing up with Lucy. "Now let's do this!"

* * *

"This is amazing!" Chapati shouted on the mic. "Simply amazing! A three-way battle between two-person teams! Not only that, but all of them have heavily destructive magic! This is the battle of the Crimson Lotus!"

"What is going on in your head when you come up with these names?" Yajima wondered.

"I'm so excited-kabo!" Mato cheered, earning some more cheers from the fans. "There's no telling how this will go-kabo!"

* * *

William watched the screen, a focused look on her face, then raised her thumb and forefinger in a backwards L sign.

Wendy looked up from the healing she was working on and smiled. "That's important in life, you know," she said. "Believing in your friends."

"Yeah. I think they can do this. I believe in those two. In fact, I believe in all five of them."

* * *

Hisoka dropped his water shield, watching as Nashi began to stagger. He dashed forward, catching her as she fell and tumbling to the ground with her, landing hard on his uninjured side and letting Nashi land on top of him. He lay there, breathing heavily, Nashi continuing to lie on top of him.

"What was the point in that?" asked Nashi.

"I'm pretty sure I'm a softer surface to land on than the ground," grunted Hisoka. "I thought it'd be more comfortable for you."

Nashi sighed. "Baka."

"Whatever."

"Well, I'm too exhausted to move," Nashi decided. "So I'm not doing anything about it."

"I noticed," Hisoka agreed. "So am I. Between dragging Juvia to safety, holding up that water shield, and getting zapped, as well as hitting the ground like I just did, I could use some rest."

Nashi chuckled. "Well, I guess we're stuck like this for a while."

Hisoka laughed with her, then took a moment of silence before speaking up again. "You did well, Rika."

"That's still a weird nickname."

"I'm weird."

"Fair enough."

Gajeel watched this from around a corner, then looked down at the iron club he had prepared, ultimately deciding to retract it back into his hand and smiling with amusement. "Honestly, those two…" He turned and walked off. "They may be easy points, but I'd rather not break up that moment."

Hisoka and Nashi took no notice of this as Hisoka activated his healing magic. "I can't move, but I still have magic left."

Nashi smiled as a cool, relaxing feeling washed over her. "It feels great. Unfortunately, I actually am out of magic, so I can't return the favor."

"Oh, yeah. You have some healing magic as well now."

"Weird. I can't move my right hand either, even though it doesn't require my energy."

"Maybe you damaged it in the fight. It's not indestructible, after all."

"Perhaps."

Hisoka let the water from his healing magic wash over him. "I may not be able to heal myself, but it's still really refreshing." He rolled over to his right, causing Nashi to slide off of him. "Sorry, your weight was putting uncomfortable pressure on my wound. In fact, I hurt all over from that fall."

"Mm." Nashi barely responded as her now-soaked hair fell in front of her face. "Just… want… sleep…"

Hisoka tried to protest, to explain why they needed to remain alert, but he didn't have the energy to speak, let alone reason. His thoughts clouded over as his eyes drifted shut and sleep slowly overtook him.

* * *

 _Eallesander stared down the young woman who had been trying to lead everyone to safety._

 _She looked back at Eallesander, a determined look in her eyes_

 _A frozen nitrogen blade grew from Eallesander's hand, and they struck._

* * *

Eallesander froze mid-swing, seeing Emma's face and how similar it was to that young woman back then.

Emma saw this opening and scrambled to her feet. "Tetsuryuukon!"

This time, Eallesander took the blow instead of melting the club, skidding back and coughing up a bit of purple blood.

"Huh?" Emma retracted the club and ran over to Eallesander, who was now curled up on the ground in pain. "Oi, are you alright? You should have easily blocked that. And why did you hesitate?"

"I couldn't… do it… again… not this time…" Eallesander coughed.

"What are you talking about?" Emma asked. "Why can't you fight me again?"

"It's not you…" Eallesander painfully sat up, assisted by Emma. "It's just… seeing those ruins." They pointed out the rubble from the Eclipse gate. "Suddenly, I couldn't fight like I did back then. You reminded me of her."

"'Her'?"

Eallesander shook their head. "I've done unspeakable things in the past. When I met Hiromi, and he invited me to join Sabertooth, I felt like I could just put it all behind me – live a somewhat normal life. But seeing the Eclipse ruins reminded me, and then seeing your face." Their breathing quickened as the memories came back to them. "Sorry, I just can't fight you. You look too much like her. I surrender. Your team gets a point."

"But why…?"

"Respect my wish, please!"

Emma shut her mouth, looking at Eallesander and trying to figure out how to respond.

"Just leave. Please."

Emma stood up, took one last look at Eallesander, then turned and walked off.

* * *

"Shinkuryuukon!" Akane slammed a crimson pillar into Natsu, knocking him back. Then he swung it around to Romeo, while Merlin went for Asuka.

"Go ahead and try!" Asuka pointed her guns and shot lightning at Merlin.

"Douryuu no Uroko!" Merlin's skin turned to copper and the lightning passed over him harmlessly.

"Karyuu no Kouen!" Natsu brought his hands together, creating a massive fireball that engulfed everyone

"Nice try." The flames cleared to reveal Akane standing in front of Merlin, engulfed head-to-toe in crimson energy.

"Interesting," Natsu said. "That stuff acts as both solid and gaseous, depending on how you use it."

"Pretty cool, right? Shinkuryuu no Houkou!" Akane unleashed his breath weapon at Natsu, engulfing him. Suddenly, he was knocked off his feet as Lucy burst out of the ground, wearing a maid outfit and accompanied by Virgo.

"Nice one, Lucy," Natsu praised as the energy was dispelled. He rushed toward Akane. "Karyuu no Tekken!" He slammed a flame-engulfed fist into Akane, who was knocked to one side, but maintained his footing. The visible damage from the attack was as expected, but he behaved as if it were a minor burn.

Akane spread his arms. "Shinkuryuu no Youkugeki!" He whipped tendrils of crimson energy at both Natsu and Lucy, knocking each one into a building behind them.

Natsu got up, clearly in pain, and looked over at Lucy, his eyes widening as he realized she was down, and Virgo had dematerialized. He looked over at his four opponents. "I guess I have to do this alone, then?"

Suddenly, Akane was yanked aside by this sticky purple flame. "This guy's mine!" Romeo shouted.

"You're not going to defeat him alone!" Asuka broke up her fight with Merlin, running around behind Natsu while covering herself with water shots. "I'm your teammate, remember?"

"You're the only one I'll allow to work with me here, Asuka!" Romeo made a flame-assisted leap into the air, landing a kick on Natsu, who blocked it with his arm.

"Glad to hear it." Asuka fired a few powerful wind shots at Natsu, who was tossed about, but was still barely affected.

"Double element mode: Lightning-Flame Dragon!" Natsu's entire body was immediately engulfed in fire and lightning. "Raienryuu no Kouen!"

Akane jumped in front of Merlin, once again activating his crimson armor. "Isn't he worried about hurting Lucy?"

"He can make his flames not affect specific people," Merlin explained. "That's what makes him so terrifying. He can use super-destructive moves without worrying about his allies." He grabbed Akane's arm. "Now let's get out of here while we can!"

"But we're in the middle of a fight."

"There's no way we can beat him in his double dragon mode!" Merlin asserted. "We have the Games to win. Come on!"

Akane hesitated, then nodded reluctantly and sprouted his wings, grabbing Merlin and flying off.

"Oh, no you don't!" Natsu threw a spear of flame at them, but it collided with Akane's own crimson spear, exploding harmlessly.

"Nice one, Akane," Merlin praised. "Now let's find the others."

Romeo swung a fist at Natsu, who grabbed his arm, swung him around and threw him back to Asuka.

"Can't you control his fire?" Asuka asked.

"I could if it weren't mixed with his lightning."

"Raienryuu no Houkou!" Romeo and Asuka were caught up in a torrent of flames and lightning that tore through an entire city block. As the flames cleared, Natsu saw that Romeo and Asuka were both down, and dropped his double dragon mode. "I'm gonna win this. From here on out, I'm going all out."

* * *

"Akane and Merlin have fled, while Romeo and Asuka are down," Chapati announced. "That's two points to Fairy Tail A Team!"

* * *

William watched the LacrimaVision with concern.

"Sometimes the best course of action is to retreat and await another opportunity," Wendy reassured.

"I know," William replied. "I'm not upset, just concerned. Natsu's acting like he's lost almost no power, not to mention that Hallowguard has a pretty strong team."

"But Dragon King is tied with Hallowguard," Wendy pointed out. "Not to mention they each have over twice as many points as Fairy Tail A Team. Plus, Dragon King and Hallowguard are the only two teams who haven't lost anyone."

William nodded. "There are three ways I can see this going. One of them is substantially less probable than the other two, but still plausible, given what I know about Natsu."

Wendy sighed. "I think I know which one you're talking about."

"I calculate a seven percent chance of that outcome."

"Well, Natsu is pretty powerful."

"Maybe eight percent."

"How do you even calculate that?"

William shrugged. "I kind of just smash together random factors in my head."

* * *

Erik perked up. Then he leaped to one side as Natsu dove past him with a flaming fist. "Nice try. Don't you remember that I can hear you?"

"That was just to get your attention." Natsu looked up and rolled out of the way of an attack from Macbeth. Then he was tossed about by a powerful gust of wind.

Cobra looked over to where Erigor was floating in the air. "Nice one, Erigor."

Natsu stood there. "Ah, a third opponent. Maybe you'll stand a chance. Your name's Erigor, right?"

Erigor gave Natsu a look of disappointed exasperation. "Yes. You fought me during the Lullaby incident, as well as when you were trying to stop Nirvana."

Natsu tilted his head in confusion. "Sorry, doesn't ring a bell."

Erigor's jaw dropped. "Seriously?!"

Natsu held out a hand to shake and grinned. "Nice to meet you!" He was then thrown back by another blast of wind.

"You're an idiot, and we're going to defeat you!" Erigor shouted.

Natsu maintained his footing. "Well, that was rude." He began to radiate heat. "So I guess we can get on with me kicking your asses?"

"You think you can beat all three of us?" Cobra inquired as the cooler air spilled towards Natsu and blew upward as it got hotter.

Macbeth grinned. "I'm sorry, but magic can't… oof!" he grunted as Natsu punched him square in the stomach.

"Last I checked, I ain't made of magic!" He then aimed a kick at Erik.

"I can still hear your movements." Erik stepped out of the way, then grabbed Natsu's foot. His eyes widened, and he let go, yelling in pain. He looked at his hand and saw that it was now badly burnt.

"Karyuu no Tekken!" Natsu stepped to one side of Erik and delivered a flame-assisted punch, which sent him slamming into a still-recovering Macbeth and caused them to both crash into a nearby restaurant.

"Wind Mail!" Erigor engulfed his body in wind.

"You know, that kind of rings a bell!" Natsu leaped up and grabbed Erigor by the ankle, causing the wind mail to be pulled towards his heated-up body and dispersed. "Karyuu no Houkou!" He let go and unleashed his breath weapon, sending Erigor flying.

Natsu grinned as he let the heat die down. "My mistake. You guys don't stand a chance." Suddenly, an unknown force slammed into his back, knocking the wind out of him. He looked around, and could see something zipping around the area, too quickly for him to see properly, landing strike after strike on him, and withdrawing before he could react. He grinned. "I know who you are." He activated his lightning-flame dragon mode just in time for another blow, and the attacker froze in place as the lightning went through their body. Natsu turned around to see Sawyer lying defeated on the ground. "That's four more points for me, then."

* * *

"Natsu has eliminated the remaining members of Crime Sorcier!" Chapati announced excitedly. "This brings Fairy Tail A Team up to fifth place, at thirty-nine points!"

* * *

Sherry brought a house to life, shaping it into a vaguely humanoid form. "Take this!" The house-doll threw a punch at Natsu, who then blasted the house to smithereens.

Marlo threw blast after blast of wind at Natsu.

"Hey, I think I just fought someone like you!" Natsu began to radiate heat, rendering himself nearly impervious to wind attacks. "Karyuu no Houkou!" He took out both mother and son with his breath attack.

"I don't think so." Wally took aim from his hiding place and sniped Natsu with a magic bullet.

"Huh?" Natsu turned around, unfazed. "That kinda stung."

"You were unaffected?!"

Natsu rushed over to Wally, grabbing Wally before he could react. "Karyuu no Akugeki!" His hand ignited and blasted Wally backward. Then he dove headfirst at the man. "Karyuu no Kenkaku!" He engulfed his entire body in flame and headbutted Wally, knocking him out. Then he took a flame-assisted leap up at Yuka, who was standing on a roof.

"Crap…" Yuka threw up his anti-magic wave, but Natsu just leaped in as his magic was dispelled, then landed two punches, one to Yuka's stomach and the other to his face, stunning him and dispelling his anti-magic wave.

"Karyuu no Kagizume!" Natsu finished the fight with a flame-assisted kick to the side of Yuka's jaw, and Yuka collapsed to the ground.

* * *

"Another four points to Natsu as he eliminates Lamia scale!"

"It seems he is on a rampage," Yajima commented.

* * *

William watched the screen with increasing concern. "The chances of that outcome are steadily rising. He just took out Carli and Orga."

* * *

"This is insane," Shay said. "How did this guy get so powerful?"

Burah shrugged. "A crazy level of experience?"

Utkarsh watched the LacrimaVision with interest. "I can't believe I nearly defeated someone this powerful."

"Good thing we decided to group back up," Tolla sighed. "We need to form a plan."

"There he goes with the rest of Sabertooth," Ulsu observed.

"How is he able to fight Rufus?" Tolla wondered. "Can't Rufus make people forget spells?"

"Unfortunately, when Natsu doesn't know a spell for the job, he improvises," Utkarsh explained. "That's why I wasn't able to beat him."

* * *

"Mirajane…"

"Natsu…"

The two mages stared each other down, Natsu grinning evilly.

"You think you can take me?" Mira inquired.

"I'll have you know I've gotten far more powerful in the five years I was gone."

Mirajane transformed into her demonic form, then rushed toward Natsu.

"Karyuu no…" Natsu swung a flame-engulfed fist, but only met thin air as Mirajane suddenly swerved away. "A feint, huh?" He spun around, guessing the timing from past experience, and his fist connected with his opponent, who fell back. "I may have been gone all the time, but I still remember my guildmates' attack patterns."

"Not bad," replied Mirajane. She brought her hands together. "Evil Explosion!" A dark blast engulfed the area. Suddenly, part of the blast appeared to get sucked into a certain spot. As it cleared up, Natsu was revealed to be inhaling the blast.

"Demonic or not, fire-based attacks only make me stronger."

"That was fire-based?"

Natsu shrugged. "I guess with all the dark magic mixed in, it's hard to tell, but apparently." Scales began to appear on his skin.

"Dragon Force?"

"Shiranuigata Guren Hououken!" Natsu charged Mirajane, delivering a powerful uppercut that sent her into the air before she could react, then burst upward and slammed into her once more, continuing to fly upward with the stunned demon mage. Then he grabbed her and pointed her downward. "Karyuu no Houken!" His arm was almost completely obscured in flame as he blasted Mirajane back to the ground, granting her only enough reaction time to land in a nonlethal way. Then he landed back on the ground next to his now-defeated opponent.

* * *

"And Natsu continues his rampage by defeating the Demon Mirajane!"

* * *

Hisoka slowly opened his eyes, finding that he was face-to-face with a sleeping Nashi. His eyes widened in surprise, and he quickly slid away and immediately crashed to the floor. He quickly got up, his face heating up with embarrassment. "Uh… nobody saw that, right?" He looked around and realized he was in the hotel room where his team had been staying for the past week. Then he realized he was not alone, as Merlin, Emma and Akane were sitting on their beds.

"Finally, you're awake!" Akane greeted.

"Uh, what are we doing here? Nashi and I fell asleep in the street."

"Well, we carried you back here," Merlin explained. "After all, sleeping in the street left you vulnerable to potential attackers. We can't have that, can we?"

Hisoka then noticed the stabbing pain in his side. He sat down on an empty bed, surprised it had taken him that long to register it, then looked over at Nashi and then back at the others. "And why did you place us like that?"

Merlin shrugged. "You fell asleep that way, and it was kind of cute. It was Emma's idea to put you back in that position."

Hisoka's face once again heated up. "Right, well, maybe we didn't mean to fall asleep." He stood up and limped over to the window to see the sun setting. "Looks like we've been out a few hours." He looked over at Merlin. "Merlin, I'm sorry that I eavesdropped on you and Elkhart."

Merlin sighed. "It's not me you should apologize to. It's Elkhart. Besides, as your teammate, I can't really afford to be mad at you. Not to say I've completely forgiven you, though. That may take a while."

"Right…" Hisoka perked up to the sound of Nashi stirring, and looked over to see her groggily sitting up, her right arm still limp as it slid across her lap. She looked around at the others.

"What happened to your arm?" Merlin asked. "It looks kind of limp."

"It broke down after my fight with Hiromi," Nashi explained. "I'm not sure exactly what it was."

Hisoka looked over at Merlin. "By the way, what's the score?"

"We're tied with Hallowguard at sixty-eight points," Merlin replied. "Fairy Tail A Team has fifty-one points. The others have been eliminated."

Hisoka's eyes widened. "But before, they only had thirty-three points!"

"Well, Akane and I defeated Lucy, but then Natsu went on some sort of rampage. The last to go down was Gajeel. You should have seen the two fighting double dragon modes, though! It was pretty epic!"

Hisoka's eyes widened as an idea popped into his head. "Uh, Merlin, how many members does Hallowguard have left?"

"Uh, all five. Why?"

"And each entire team is worth nine points, with the four regulars and the leader, correct?"

"Yeah, but…" Merlin broke off as he realized what Hisoka was getting at. "So if Natsu now defeats all of us, he would get…"

"Sixty-nine points."

"But there's no way he could defeat all ten of us, right?" Akane asked.

"I dunno," Emma speculated. "He seemed to get a lot more powerful when he went on that rampage."

"Kuso!" Nashi cursed. "Most of my magic requires two arms." She held up the nonfunctioning prosthetic. "I can't even feel this thing at the moment, much less channel magic through it."

"We'll make things work out," Hisoka promised. "After all, you were able to fight when you had first lost your arm. You can do this. We all can."

Nashi nodded and stood up. "That doesn't mean I ain't pissed about it."

There was a knock on the door.

"I'll get it." Emma headed over and opened the door to reveal Utkarsh.

"Hey, guys," Utkarsh greeted. "I come in peace. My team agreed that we should try and work together in the current situation."

* * *

Natsu looked up at the castle Mercurius, then leaped up, assisted by his flames, jumping off of foothold after foothold until he reached the top spire. Then he shouted across the darkening city.

"Hallowguard! Dagon King! I'm gonna win this tournament! Come and see if you can stop me!"

* * *

 **When I started writing this chapter, I swear I had no idea Natsu was going to go on this rampage. Hope you enjoyed!**


	40. GMG Arc - The Dragon King Festival

"Hallowguard! Dagon King! I'm gonna win this tournament! Come and see if you can stop me!"

Hisoka looked over at the castle. It was too far away to see anyone, but he could hear Natsu's voice loud and clear. "That guy sure has a loud voice," he commented.

Utkarsh took a brief glance at the castle, then looked back at Dragon King. "I take it you've figured out by now what Natsu is trying to do?"

"He's going to win the Games by one point if he beats all ten of us," Merlin replied. "We are all aware."

"Well, the only reliable way to prevent that is for us to fight each other before he can get to us."

"I disagree," Nashi argued. "If we start fighting, he'll see where we are, and he'll come down to take us out before we can take each other out."

"What do you suggest, then?"

"Our best bet is for all of us to take him on at once," Nashi explained. "There's no way he could fight all ten of us."

"That challenge he issued, though…" Merlin looked out at the spire. "He sounds pretty confident."

"He's been overly confident before, though," Nashi pointed out.

"So have you."

Nashi glared at Merlin.

"As much as you may hate to admit it, it's true," Merlin continued. "It runs in the family, doesn't it?"

Nashi pouted, or whatever one calls pouting with only one arm. "Whatever. It's the only chance we've got, isn't it?"

"She has a point there," Hisoka chimed in. "His senses are pretty good. He'll notice if we start fighting, no matter where we are in the city." He turned back to Utkarsh. "Go back to your team. We'll all meet in the downtown plaza in one hour."

Utkarsh looked around the room at the others, who nodded in confirmation, then turned and bolted into the night.

Hisoka turned to the rest of his team. "Everyone cool with that?"

"It's our best bet," Akane agreed. "Let's get ready."

* * *

William sat up, took the crutches and shakily stood up.

"Good," Wendy affirmed. "You should be able to go on jobs again soon."

"Approximately three weeks," said Porlyusica. "I'm not sure about Hisoka. I told him not to be in the final battle."

"He has combat magic, and I don't," Thomas explained. "That's why he insisted."

"I don't care if he promised to do what I said after the final battle," Porlyusica glowered. "He should never have ignored my warnings."

"Well, he is a Dreyar," Wendy pointed out.

"Right. Of course. He's going to continue to do stupid things while he's still recovering from the last stupid thing he did."

William took a few shaky steps forward on the crutches, then stopped to catch her breath. She looked up at Porlyusica. "I can attend the ball, right?"

Porlyusica nodded. "Just don't try dancing."

William nodded, then took a few deep breaths and took more steps. "You know, sometimes I feel like I keep getting injured just as I'm recovering from the last injury."

"Perhaps you're a Dreyar in disguise."

William glared at Porlyusica as the others burst out laughing, then stumbled back in surprise as she saw the old woman's expression.

"What?"

"Y-You're s-smiling."

"I found what I said funny."

"B-But y-you never smile!"

"I don't smile very frequently in the presence of humans, for reasons you probably know. But it may surprise you to know that the serious, no-nonsense Porlyusica can, in fact, find things amusing."

"Right…" William walked back to her bed, then lowered herself gently and set the crutches aside. She looked around at the others, who had stopped laughing by now, and then cracked a smile herself. She looked up at the LacrimaVision, which now displayed Hallowguard and Dragon King conversing in a plaza. "I wonder what they're planning…" she took a controller and switched the display to Natsu, who was still on top of the castle. "And how does he plan to take on all ten of them?"

* * *

Elkhart watched the LacrimaVision with annoyance. "So you finally broke it, huh?"

"Who broke what?" asked Gildarts.

"Nashi. She busted the arm I made for her. I told her she shouldn't be careless with it."

"Don't be too hard on her. She really wanted to be in the Games."

"Whatever. I'm still kind of annoyed, since I'm the one who's supposed to repair it."

"Well, at least she didn't destroy it or anything. A simple internal breakdown should be fairly simple to fix."

"True." Elkhart looked back at the LacrimaVision. "I hope we can get this over with soon."

* * *

"So we're all in agreement?" asked Hisoka.

The others nodded.

"Anybody think any changes to the plan would work better?"

"I think this is the best we're going to get," replied Emma. "We need to get this over with."

"And remember, if Natsu comes down and attacks one of the groups, the rest of us close in on him. Shay, got your telepathy ready?"

Shay nodded. "Let's go."

"Hold on." Nashi walked over to Hisoka. "Gate of the horse, heal my companions: Mǎ." Her hand took on a familiar orange glow, and she placed the hand on the location of Hisoka's wound, and the pain Hisoka was feeling lessened. "Again, it won't heal you, due to the nature of the wound, but you should be able to move normally for a while, long enough to finish this fight, at least. Just don't try flying or sprinting."

Hisoka nodded. "Thanks. Now let's go."

"And they're off!" Chapati announced "Time to conclude the X812 Grand Magic Games once and for all!"

The crowd cheered.

* * *

"Now, I imagine anybody with a basic understanding of math has figured out Natsu's plan by now," Chapati continued. "What do you think, Yajima-san?"

"I do not know if Natsu can win this," Yajima replied. "He has displayed incredible power that suggests the possibility, but his opponents are all working together, and may overpower him."

* * *

Hisoka moved at a steady jog alongside Nashi and Utkarsh, heading straight for the castle entrance.

"Ready, Utkarsh?" Nashi asked.

Utkarsh nodded and leaped high into the air, finding purchase on the stonework and pulling himself up with surprising speed, while Nashi and Hisoka continued into the castle.

"Tetsuryuukon!"

"Aruminiamuryuukon!"

Emma and Merlin launched themselves upward with their metal pillars, while Akane ascended beside them. Then the iron dragonslayers retracted their poles, then extended them again at the roofs they had passed. Meanwhile, a shadow slipped up the wall next to them. They all landed on top of the three slightly lower castle spires surrounding the one where Natsu stood, with Utkarsh landing next to Ulsu, and the Redfox siblings landing together. Akane landed on his spire alone.

* * *

Natsu looked around at the five of them, who refused to make a move. "Interesting plan you got there. I'm curious to see it in more detail." He looked down at the three surrounding the castle at the bottom. "That makes eight… so where are the other two?"

 _We are in position,_ Akane messaged. _I repeat, we are in position._

 _Good,_ Hisoka confirmed as he and Nashi ascended the staircase. _We're almost there._

 _We are also in position,_ Shay added.

Hisoka and Nashi climbed up the last steps into a gigantic domed room. He transmitted the view to Merlin using Shay's telepathy.

 _That's it,_ Merlin confirmed. _You are currently directly beneath Natsu._

 _Commencing plan…_ Hisoka held up his hand, creating a watery sphere as the moisture in the air condensed on that point. Then it spun into a flat, circular blade and started flying around the room, slicing a pattern of gigantic grooves across the wall. "Nashi! Now!"

"Double Element Mode: Lightning Flame Dragon!" Nashi's double dragon mode activated, and she raised her working hand, creating a small, brightly glowing sphere. "Raienryuu no Enbaretsu!" The sphere burst into a gigantic electrified fireball, cracking the walls and ceiling of the room where Hisoka had made the grooves.

Natsu yelped in surprise as the roof he was standing on erupted into lightning and flame.

"Now!" Akane flew at Natsu. "Shinkuryuu no Tekken!" His arm swirled with crimson energy, and he punched Natsu with incredible force.

"Tetsuryuukon!"

"Tangusutenryuukon!"

Merlin and Emma slammed their metal clubs into Natsu before he could recover from Akane's attack, sending them straight toward Utkarsh and Ulsu.

"Let's go, Ulsu!" Utkarsh took Ulsu's hand, and she melted into shadow, using Utkarsh as a surface, and Utkarsh leaped up, grappling Natsu, while Ulsu wrapped her shadowy form around Natsu. The three plummeted toward the ground.

"That was quite the plan!" Natsu roared. "Let's do this."

"Have fun with the ground!" Utkarsh shouted, then leaped away from the dragonslayer, leaving him to be restrained by Ulsu. Then his own fall was slowed as Tolla used her wind magic.

"Smart of you to restrain me," Natsu praised. "However…" He activated his double dragon mode, lightning running across his body and glowing brightly, forcing Ulsu out of her shadow form and then electrocuting her. Then he twisted to face the ground and his hands together. "Raienryuu no Kouen!" He cushioned the impact by destroying the ground beneath him.

"Ulsu!" Utkarsh sprinted over and caught his guildmate, purposefully falling over to absorb some of the impact.

"That's a point for me!" Natsu declared.

"You won't be getting a whole lot more, though!" Shay brought up their spheres and shot them at Natsu, pummeling him repeatedly.

Utkarsh set down the unconscious Ulsu and charged at Natsu, delivering a kick to his side. "We can still fight with one member down!"

Burah hardened his skin and also charged at Natsu. "That's the spirit, Utkarsh!"

"Raienryuu no Houkou!" Natsu unleashed his breath weapon. Utkarsh somehow dodged it at point-blank range, while Burah took the brunt of it, pushing his stoneskin to the limit. Shay was engulfed completely.

"Shay!" Utkarsh ran over as Shay fell to the ground.

"Another point for me!"

"Five points, actually," Burah corrected. "Shay was our leader."

Just then, four metal pillars slammed into Natsu from above, flattening him, and Merlin and Emma lowered themselves to the ground.

"Did somebody call for assistance?" Merlin inquired.

"'Bout time," Utkarsh retorted.

* * *

Natsu stumbled to his feet and looked around at everyone. "Now there's a good challenge!" He barely leaped out of the way as Akane swooped in for another attack.

Hisoka listened to the commotion below. "We'd better go down and help them."

"Well, I can't fight very well with one working arm," Nashi pointed out.

"I'm going down."

"Hold on!" Nashi commanded. "First, let me enter your body."

"Huh?!" Hisoka's face turned bright red.

"Not like that, idiot! It's the same thing I did with Emma when we were fighting Asuka. I can use my spectral form to temporarily give you my powers. Not my Eastern Zodiac powers, but everything else."

"Ah." Hisoka relaxed, embarrassed for misinterpreting that.

Nashi detached her key ring from her belt and tossed them to Hisoka. "These, however, should work with you.

"Right." Hisoka attached the keys to his belt.

"The order from the gold side to the silver side is Scorpio, Aries, Cancer, Caelum, Lyra, Aquila and Lupus."

"Got it. Which one's Aquila again?"

"The eagle."

"Right."

"You ready?"

Hisoka nodded.

"Gate of the sheep, separate me from my body: Yáng!" An orange, glowing translucent form burst from Nashi, leaving her body to crumple to the floor. The spectral form drifted forward and entered Hisoka's body, giving him a warm, tingling sensation coupled with a surge of unfamiliar power.

 _Let's go. I can still use my healing magic on you._

Hisoka nodded. _I'm not leaving your body behind, though. The castle might get destroyed, and you shouldn't be up here when it does._ He ran over and scooped up Nashi's body. He slung her over his shoulder and pulled out a key. "Gate of the eagle, I open thee: Aquila!"

A lightning bolt descended from the sky and struck the ground before Hisoka, taking the form of a gigantic eagle. The eagle looked over at Hisoka and saw Nashi hanging over his shoulder. There was a look of anger in its eyes. "What have you done to my holder?"

"Nothing," Hisoka replied. "She projected her soul into my body, giving me her powers, so for now, I am your holder."

"You expect me to believe that?!"

"Check the bonds of your contract! You are bound to me until Nashi returns to her body."

Aquila was taken aback for a moment, then bowed their head.

"Can you fly us down to the ground?"

Aquila nodded and lowered themself to the ground. Hisoka laid Nashi's body on their back and then got on himself.

"Let's go."

Aquila took off and dove toward Natsu, their body beginning to crackle with lightning. They struck at Natsu, who was visibly electrocuted. Then they swerved away and dropped off Hisoka and Nashi.

"How is your lightning working on him?" Hisoka asked.

"The elements of the celestial spirit world are harder to digest, and lightning is an unnatural element for him."

Hisoka nodded in understanding. "Keep attacking him, then." As Aquila obeyed, Hisoka pulled out another key. "Gate of the wolf, I open thee: Lupus!"

 _Careful,_ Nashi warned as the wolf spirit appeared. _Celestial spirit magic can be pretty consumptive, and you were planning to do your own fighting, right?_

 _I know. I'll be careful._ Hisoka placed Nashi's body on the wolf's back. "Take her somewhere safe." As the wolf ran off, he turned towards the fight, where Utkarsh, Burah and Tolla were standing back so as not to get electrocuted by Aquila. "Aquila, I'm going to close your gate now, so the rest of us can fight." He held out Aquila's key, which glowed for a moment as Aquila vanished in a burst of lightning. Then he reattached the keys to Nashi's key ring. "Now let's see how I fight with opposing elements." Water began to wrap around one hand, while the other was engulfed in flames.

"Interesting," Natsu commented. "I saw something like that when Nashi and Emma were fighting Asuka."

"Ensenryuu no Honpouka!" Hisoka thrust his water-engulfed hand forward, while keeping his flaming hand back, and a line of high-pressure water shot at Natsu, with tendrils of flame spiraling around it, slamming into Natsu's stomach. "Use water too closely with flames, and it just creates steam, but create that steam quickly, at just the right moment, and it can pack quite a punch." He continued to unleash this new attack, sending Natsu flying high into the sky. Then the older Dragonslayer shot back toward the ground, using flames from his feet for thrust. Hisoka was barely able to dodge as Natsu slammed into the ground with an incredible explosion. He tumbled across the ground and watched as Natsu stood up and stared at him menacingly.

"Oh? You think knocking me around is all it takes to beat me?" Natsu inquired, tilting his head, his eyes reflecting the moonlight to make him look all the more demonic.

"Tetsuryuukon!"

Suddenly, four iron pillars slammed down on Natsu, planting him in the pavement. He unleashed an explosion underneath himself, lifting up and throwing off Merlin and Emma's attacks.

"Shinkuryuu no Houkou!" A blast of crimson energy engulfed Natsu as Akane unleashed his breath weapon.

"Now's our chance, Burah!" Utkarsh faced Natsu and crouched, letting Burah leap over him, and then planted his hands against Burah's feet and catapulted him at Natsu, who had just managed to stumble out of Akane's inferno, only to be knocked to the ground by the stoneskin mage.

"Burah! Out of the way!" Tolla shouted. Burah jumped out of the way after stunning Natsu, just in time for Tolla to release a blast of air which threw Natsu into the castle wall, creating several large holes in a line through the castle.

"I don't understand," Utkarsh panted. "All it took to beat you _and_ Wendy last time was me and Burah."

"I didn't use Second Origin or any of my other special powers," Natsu replied as he climbed out. "You took me down before I could realize I should have used them. Raienryuu no Houkou!" He unleashed his breath weapon, which came out so strongly that Tolla was unable to block it, and was taken out by the blast.

Hisoka stood up, clutching his side painfully, and looked over at the fight, his head spinning, unable to focus his vision.

 _You alright, Hisoka?_ Nashi asked.

 _I hurt all over from that explosion, especially where I got stabbed, I can't think or see clearly, and I'm up against your dad,_ Hisoka replied. _What do you think?_ "Ensenryuu no Juatsukiri!" He unleashed his familiar water drill attack, this time with flames spiraling around it, causing the tip of the drill to boil, and hit Natsu in the stomach, stunning him and throwing him at Utkarsh and Burah.

"Alright!" The two remaining Hallowguard members brought up their fists, using Natsu's momentum to increase the power of their strike and causing Natsu to gasp in pain. "This ends right here!" Utkarsh shouted.

Natsu plopped to the ground, initially unmoving, but then chuckled. "You're right…" He sounded like he was still in pain, but managed to get up. "Raienryuu no Kouen!" He brought his hands together before either of them could react, creating a giant explosion of flame and lightning that engulfed all three of them.

"Shinkuryuu no Uroko!" Akane covered his body in solidified crimson energy and charged at Natsu before the explosion could die down. "Shinkuryuu no Kenkaku!" He headbutted Natsu, once again knocking him prone. As the explosion died down, Hisoka could see Natsu getting up, with Burah and Utkarsh lying on the ground, unmoving.

"And with that, Natsu has defeated all five members of Hallowguard!" Chapati announced. "But can he follow up with Dragon King?"

"Chitanryuu no Uroko!" Merlin covered himself in titanium scales and charged at Natsu. "Kouryuuken!" His arms turned into steel blades as he slashed repeatedly.

"Nice that some of this wood got turned into charcoal," Emma commented, taking a bite out of a chunk of burned wood. "Kouryuukon!" She used steel poles to catapult herself over Merlin's head. "Kouryuu no Houkou!" She unleashed her breath weapon directly in Natsu's face, almost at point-blank range, then jumped back as the torrent of steel filings cleared. Her eyes widened as she saw the damage she had done.

"Luckily, you didn't directly damage my eyeballs, since I closed my eyes on time," Natsu noted. "However, I won't be able to safely open them until I get to Wendy."

"I… blinded you?"

"Like I said, it's not permanent. Now let's finish this fight! Raienryuu no Tekken!" He surprised Akane with his accuracy as he slammed his fist into the crimson dragonslayer. "Come and get me!"

Hisoka couldn't think clearly for a moment, but then realized what was going on, and started to run around Natsu, not breaking into a sprint as he knew he could hurt himself even worse than he had.

"I can hear your footsteps. Raienryuu no Youkugeki!" Natsu waved an arm, whipping a tendril of fire and lightning at Hisoka, who somehow managed to dodge the attack in his injured state.

"Hear this!" Hisoka took on the same stance he had used about three minutes ago. "Ensenryuu no Honpouka!" He was too slow, however, as Natsu dodged and he only succeeded in punching a hole in the castle wall. "Kuso…" he cursed as he dropped to one knee. _Nashi… I can't do this anymore._

 _I understand._ Nashi's spectral form burst from Hisoka and shot in the direction Lupus had taken her body, leaving Hisoka kneeling before Natsu.

"Raienryuu no Kagizume!" Natsu ran at Hisoka, delivering a flame-assisted kick to the middle of his ribcage and sending him sprawling.

Hisoka lay there, unmoving. _I… lose…_ his vision faded to black as the sweet release of unconsciousness overtook him. _I leave the rest to you… Rika._

Akane got to his feet as Natsu turned to face him, Emma and Merin. "We can do this, guys."

Emma nodded. "Kouryuuken!" A steel pole shot from her hand towards Natsu, who somehow managed to dodge without seeing the attack, leaning to one side of the pole. "I believe this belongs to Emma?" He jerked the pole upwards, flipping Emma over his head and sending her crashing into the castle, where she was buried in a pile of rubble.

"Tangusutenryuukon!" Merlin extended a tungsten pole at Natsu. This time, he caught it and was shoved back several meters.

"Nice!" Natsu praised, grappling the pole with both hands. "But by the pole, I can tell what direction you're in. Raienryuu no Houkou!"

"Douryuu no Uroko!" Merlin's body was suddenly covered in copper scales as he remembered the move William had used to defend against Mau's lightning. He could still feel the heat getting conducted by the metal, but at least he wasn't getting electrocuted.

"Shinkuryuu no Tekken!" Akane lunged at Natsu, who let go of Merlin's pillar and grabbed Akane's arm.

"Not gonna happen!" Natsu swung Akane around and slammed him into the ground, then grabbed his face. "Raienryuu no Akugeki!" With a burst of flame and a bolt of lightning traveling across the entire body, he managed to knock out Akane, giving him a hand-shaped burn mark in the process. Then he leaped out of the way, predicting Merlin's attack that hit where he had been less than a second ago.

"Kouryuuken!" Merlin's arms once again morphed into a pair of steel blades as he lunged at Natsu.

Natsu listened to the sound of the blades cutting through the air, then leaped into the air, pushing off of one of Merlin's blades. "Ha! Maybe I should close my eyes in battle more often. My other senses seem really good at this job. Raienryuu no Saigeki!" He brought both his feet down on Merlin, breaking through his copper scales. "Merlin down!" He listened to his surroundings as Merlin dropped to the ground. "Now where did Nashi go?" He stumbled slightly, realizing his other opponents had done quite a number on him.

His question was answered as a flaming bolt of lightning slammed into him with a speed and force that knocked the wind out of him and sent him sprawling. He guessed it was Nashi, even though it was hard to catch her scent through the smell of burnt wood and molten stonework.

"So you got a double dragon mode, huh?" Natsu inquired.

"What of it?" Nashi asked. "You sure you can fight me without your eyes?"

"I just took out all your teammates, didn't I?" Natsu ducked as he felt the heat of a flaming fist swinging past him. "Raienryuu no Tekken!" He managed to plant an uppercut in Nashi's stomach, giving her the same treatment he had gotten when his daughter had first entered the scene a few seconds ago.

Nashi tumbled to the ground, then got to her feet. "Gate of the rooster, release me from the bonds of gravity: Jī!" She began to feel weightless as she floated a few feet off the ground. "Try hearing my footsteps now." She flew around so as not to let Natsu pinpoint her location from that comment. "Raienryuu no Kenkaku!" She shot at Natsu once more, engulfing her body in lightning and flames.

"This is it, people!" Chapati cried. "The final showdown! Both father and daughter are using a double dragon mode. Natsu is more powerful, but is also worn out from his other opponents. Nashi's metal arm isn't working, but Natsu was blinded by a previous opponent. Whoever wins this fight wins the Grand Magic Games!"

Nashi hovered in midair, while her dad looked in her general direction, unable to pinpoint her exact location. "Raienryuu no Houkou!" She unleashed her breath weapon, which Natsu dodged. "I can…" Suddenly, Nashi trailed off. Her double dragon form dropped, and she collapsed from exhaustion.

* * *

"And with that, Fairy Tail A Team wins the Grand Magic Games!" Chapati shouted, and was met by cheers from the crowd.

As the pocket universe shimmered out of existence, leaving everyone in the real, undamaged Crocus, Natsu strode over to where Nashi lay. As he knelt down, he could smell a few tears. "Nashi, you alright?"

"I'm fine…"

Natsu sat cross-legged next to his daughter. "Don't feel bad. It was your first time using your double dragon mode, and you were using celestial spirit magic at the same time."

Nashi didn't answer.

"And even if you lost, it's not a true loss if you learned from it."

"Mm."

"You know, Gildarts once told me, many have the courage to face a powerful opponent in battle, but few have the courage to sheathe their swords. I know you could have pushed on at your level of exhaustion. I've seen you do it before. And yet you didn't. You knew you would injure yourself further, as well as your defeated teammates if your attacks got too powerful, didn't you."

There was silence for a moment. Then Nashi replied. "Yeah… I guess so…"

Natsu smiled and placed an affectionate hand on her head. "You fought well."

"Thanks, dad."

Just then, they heard running footsteps that stopped before them. Natsu felt a warm, familiar feeling on his eyes, and opened them to see Wendy. He nodded in approval. "Now go heal the others."

Wendy went to Hisoka first, surprised that he hadn't rebroken his ribs beyond slight cracks around the bolts Merlin had put in there. She did a quick job on him, then went around to Emma, Merlin, and everyone else.

"Let's all go to bed," Natsu suggested. "I'm tired, and I'm sure the rest of you are. We do need energy for tomorrow's ball, after all."

* * *

 **My original plan was actually for Hallowguard to eventually defeat Dragon King. Then, as I was writing the chapter right before this one, I realized how much more interesting it would have been if Natsu went all one-man-army on them. Hope you enjoyed!**


	41. GMG Arc - Shadows of the Past

" _I can no longer fly! But I don't need to in order to kill you." Akane watched with fear as the frost dragon picked up the unconscious William._

Come on. Move! _Akane tried to do something, but was frozen in place, the fear overtaking him. He gave up and pondered how stupid it was that fear would hold him back from preventing the thing that he was afraid of._

" _I can crush you both, starting with this one."_

" _No! Don't!" Akane could see Merlin desperately trying to move to save his sister._

 _There was a crunch, and Akane could see William's face reacting to the pain even though she was unconscious. He screamed at his body to move, and he could finally feel his wings sprout. He surged forward…_

Akane sat bolt upright, breathing heavily. He looked around the room. Nashi had already left, probably to get her arm worked on by Elkhart. Hisoka and Emma were absent, as they had spent the night with Porlyusica in the hospital, while Merlin and William slept in their beds, their chests rising and falling almost in sync with one another.

William stirred. Then her eyes slowly opened as she looked directly at Akane. "Akane… you alright…?"

" _You're_ asking _me_ if _I'm_ alright?"

William's eyes narrowed. She propped herself up against the bedframe, and Akane could see all of the bruising stains from that fight as the sheets fell. He gritted his teeth as his eyes settled on the scar from the frost dragon's claws.

"Look," William pointed out, her brow furrowing with annoyance, "just because I'm physically injured doesn't mean I can't worry about someone I care about. And I'm not talking about your physical condition. Just look at yourself! Your pupils are dilated, you're all sweaty, and I can smell the stress from here."

Akane looked away, not knowing what to say.

William turned and lowered her feet from the bed.

Akane's eyes widened. "Don't! You still can't…"

It was too late as William stood up, then immediately lost her balance as she fell forward and hit the floor with a loud thud, making Akane wince.

"…walk." Akane jumped up from his bed and scrambled over to William.

"Ouch…" William shakily moved her hands into a position to push herself up.

Akane helped William up, then gently lifted her and began to set her back down on her bed.

"Wait…" William requested. "Let's go back to your bed. I want to talk."

Akane stopped, confused, then sighed and walked over to his bed, setting William where she could lean against the bedframe. Then he sat down at her feet.

William grasped her arm, wincing in pain from the fall, her eyes watering from having hit her nose.

Akane placed a hand on her shoulder. "Why the hell did you do that?"

"I forgot about that… I was thinking more about you than myself."

Akane sighed. "You had me worried there."

"You had a nightmare, didn't you?"

Akane hesitated, then nodded. "February 3." He looked once more at the bruising stains and scars covering much of William's body.

"I see…" William trailed off, thinking for a moment. "Just don't beat yourself up over it, okay?"

"Yeah, I know. Merlin gave me a stern talking-to about that."

"He was right to."

Akane nodded. "But I can't help thinking about that moment. I was just standing there, frozen in panic. I could have saved you. If I'd just forced myself to move five seconds earlier…" Akane was cut off as a hand whipped across his face.

"You're doing what I literally just told you not to do."

"Sorry…"

"Don't give me that! You did save me. I'm still alive, right?"

"And permanently crippled."

"And what if you hadn't moved at all?!"

"That almost happened, you know…"

"But it didn't." William scooted over to Akane, clenching her teeth as the pain shit through her arms and legs. She leaned over and wrapped her arms around Akane, pressing her head against his shoulder. "As the person whose life you saved, please just accept my thanks that I am still alive. Panic does cause people to freeze, and you did well saving my life and Merlin's."

Akane sat there, not knowing what to say or do. Tears welled in his eyes.

"It hurts to see you like this," William said. "Can we just sit here for a while."

"Yeah… I suppose…" Suddenly, Akane realized they were both in their underwear. His face heated up. "But first, can we put on some clothes?"

William's face reddened, but she couldn't move very easily, so that was pretty much her only reason. "Well… I can't exactly clothe myself at the moment. I've been having Emma help me, but she spent the night at the hospital, so… Akane, are you alright?"

"Y-Yeah…" Akane stood up, carefully laying William down with her head on his pillow. Then he quickly dove to his luggage and pulled out some pants, quickly putting them on. He sighed with relief and, a bit more calmly, pulled out his vest and put it on. Then he headed over to William's luggage, pulling out various articles of clothing, asking which ones she wanted to wear today, eventually taking a full outfit to William and helping her put it on. He glanced back over at William's luggage and noticed a bundle of silk almost the same color as her hair.

"That's what I'm wearing at the ball," William explained. "No, you're not aloud to get a better look at it."

"Right…" Akane turned back to William. "Will, as you asked, I'm going to try not to beat myself up over what happened. But you can never stop me from regretting it."

"Fine. To be fair, I would, too, if we'd switched places."

Akane looked over at Merlin, who was still fast asleep. "You know, I'm surprised that none of that woke Merlin up."

"He was fighting pretty hard last night."

"So was I."

"Maybe it just affected him more strongly. Besides, you just had a nightmare."

"Right. Anyway, you have an appointment with Porlyusica and Wendy, right?"

"Yeah. Can you go ahead and take me up there?"

Akane nodded and picked up William once more.

* * *

Elkhart reattached the panel to the arm, then stood up and nodded, obviously satisfied.

Nashi held up her arm and was relieved to see that it was responding to her commands again.

"Don't go fighting with it, though," Elkhart warned. "It'll take me about a month to optimize it. I'm especially going to work on increasing its resistance to lightning."

Nashi nodded in understanding, then looked at Elkhart. "So you're genderfluid, huh?"

Elkhart sighed and nodded. "I can't believe my friends all know. And soon everyone will know."

"So what are you today?"

Elkhart raised an eyebrow, confused, then realized what Nashi was asking. "I think I'm a girl today."

Nashi nodded and stood up. "Well, in that case, wanna go out with the rest of us girls and do girly stuff?"

Elkhart shook her head. "First of all, you're focusing on this a bit too much for my comfort at the moment. Also, I have plans today."

Nashi sighed and turned to leave. "Fine."

"Maybe some other day, though!"

Nashi looked back and smiled, then continued on her way.

* * *

Hisoka sat down on the bed and looked up at Porlyusica, waiting for her diagnosis.

What he got was a smack across the top of the head from the old woman. "You idiot!" She shouted. "Injured patients aren't supposed to go out fighting! Especially if that injured patient is my great-grandson!"

"Yeah… sorry…" Hisoka pulled up his shirt, wincing in pain as some of the muscles he used for this had been severely damaged.

"Maybe I should put it back on for you." Porlyusica sat on the bed next to Hisoka and started unwrapping his bandages. "Although, I'm curious as to how you can stand wearing that much clothing in the middle of summer."

"Well, I think it's partially because my sweat is 100% water, which I can easily get rid of in order to stay dry. Although, even then, the heat shouldn't really be that fun. I'm not sure why I'm fine with it. Gah!" He winced as Porlyusica began cleaning the wound. "You know, after the fact, I agree that it was stupid of me to go fighting with these injuries."

"You don't say." Porlyusica switched to cleaning the exit wound and gave a huff of annoyance. "You're a Dreyar, alright."

"And you must have made a great mother."

Porlyusica smiled at Hisoka's comment, then pressed two fresh pieces of gauze against the wounds, wrapping them up with fresh bandages.

"You know, I think I'm going to lie down here for a while." Hisoka laid himself down on the bed. I already have an outfit for the ball, which is the only thing I currently see as important enough to move with these injuries."

"Wise choice," William agreed. "You seem a lot wiser than you were yesterday."

Hisoka laughed, which caused him to cough a few times, then just stared at the ceiling.

* * *

Elkhart stepped out of the dressing room. "Well?" She twirled around, then faced Merlin once more. "What do you think?"

Merlin stared Elkhart up and down. She wore a vibrant red dress that matched her short hair and the guildmark over her right eye perfectly. To complete the appearance, she wore a pair of clip-on black jade earrings in the shape of tightly curled fishing hooks. The dress was rather low-cut in the back, exposing Elkhart's shoulderblades and most of her upper back. Merlin stared open-mouthed for a moment, then smiled. "You do, in fact, look absolutely fantastic."

Elkhart smiled. "I picked this out almost immediately after I arrived in Crocus. I bought it in secret, though, since I still haven't come out to my parents."

Merlin nodded, his smile fading and being replaced by concern. "Are you sure about this? This is a lot of people you're about to come out to, your parents included."

Elkhart nodded. "I've already come out to those I trust the most, even if it wasn't quite the way I'd hoped. I'm not saying I expect it to be smooth sailing from here, but… I think I'm ready."

* * *

Akane fired a few crimson bolts at Torden, while Torden deflected them with his breath attack. Then, as Akane dove out of the way, he fired another bolt that managed to hit the dragon's underside. Torden grunted as the bolt hit him, then stopped in his tracks and lowered himself to the ground.

"Well done, boy," Torden praised. "I believe that's a tie, with eight hits from each of us."

"Right…" Akane sprouted his wings, stood for a moment with them spread, then dispelled them. "Any idea what made them change?"

"It's hard to tell," Torden replied. "In the nightmare, we all saw you with those wings on the LacrimaVision. I have no clue as to why they are still different. The nightmare should be over."

"Right. Well, there could be traces remaining," Akane theorized. "To be honest with you, I've still been dealing with what I saw. I had a nightmare about it last night. That dream dimension changed me, and I'm really worried as to how."

"Well, you still seem yourself. Well, aside from all that worrying you're doing."

"That's part of the trouble. I don't think I'll ever be the same again."

"Well, I would tell you to stop with all that worrying," Torden began, "but it's also, in a way, a good thing. Your worries are by no means baseless, and worrying about things can easily be what saves you from those things. Instead, I will ask that you not let your fear consume you."

Akane nodded. "I'm trying. The question is, how much can I really do about it?"

"However much you let yourself do about it," Torden replied. "I'm sorry that I cannot provide a better answer than that."

"Well, what better answer is there?"

* * *

Hisoka removed his hands from William, while Wendy also stepped back, and the healing magic dispelled. "Well, you should be able to sit up comfortably now. Unfortunately, you won't be able to walk without support. For that, you'll have to recover on your own time. I used up my First and Second Origin there."

"Same," Wendy replied.

William sat up, and sure enough, her muscles were now able to support her weight. "Thanks for what you could do, anyway."

Hisoka nodded. "Need any help getting back to the hotel?"

William shook her head. "I'd rather Akane take me."

Hisoka sat on his bed and looked at William, an adoring smile on his face. "You know, I haven't quite gotten a grasp on what those sorts of feelings sound like, but I think that's an example, isn't it?"

William's cheeks turned pink. "No!" she exclaimed.

"You realize I can tell when people are lying, right?"

William looked away, still blushing, with a sheepish look on her face. "Maybe…"

Hisoka burst out laughing.

"It's not funny!" William exclaimed.

"You're right." Hisoka tried to contain his laughter. "It's not funny. It's just really cute."

"Don't you dare tell anyone," William warned. "I haven't even told Merlin."

"Really, now?" Hisoka inquired. "Well, what are you waiting for?"

"It's not that simple…"

"Is it not?" asked Hisoka. "If I were you, I'd just tell Akane."

"I'm confused, okay?!" William blurted out. "If you think it's that simple, then you've clearly never been in love with someone!"

"I have!" Hisoka retorted. "I mean… I think I have… well… I've had crushes… I think…" He trailed off, pondering this.

"Did any of them lead to anything?"

"No…" Hisoka realized.

"And why was that?"

"Because I was confused," Hisoka replied. "I've had all these feelings for various people that I thought were crushes, but really, I didn't know what they were. I didn't know what a crush felt like, or whether that was what it felt like. And because of that, I never summed up the courage to talk to any of these people about it."

"That was a lot more detail than necessary. But basically, it boils down to being afraid to talk to them, right."

"Yeah," Hisoka confirmed. "Sorry I was talking like it was easy."

"It's fine," William reassured. "But honestly, why can't it be as easy as you were trying to make it sound? Right now, it's more like he's just helping Merlin take care of me since I got crushed. I feel like if I told Akane how I feel, it'll just make things awkward, and he'll still feel compelled to stick with me, which, if things are awkward between us like that, it'll just make us both uncomfortable, and what if he just sees me as a friend? Or maybe it's more of a doctor-patient relationship in his eyes, or…"

"William, calm down!" Hisoka stood up and placed a hand on William's shoulder, immediately causing her to calm down some. "Just breathe. Whenever you feel comfortable telling Akane, I don't think it's going to be like that. When I see you two together, I can barely distinguish between your thoughts and emotions because they're so similar. If that was love I was hearing, then I suspect he feels the same way about you."

"But you're not sure."

"Unfortunately, no," Hisoka lamented. "With love, you honestly can't tell. I mean, it's a really complicated emotion. It's not even a single emotion, to be perfectly honest. The only way to really find out if Akane returns your feelings is to ask him."

"Yeah," William agreed. "I suppose it's both one of life's joys and one of its hardships."

"That's an interesting way of putting it," Hisoka mused. Then he turned to leave. "Well, I'm going back to the hotel. You sure you don't want my help?"

"I'm good."

Hisoka continued out the door.

William looked over at Wendy and Porlyusica. "You'd better not tell anyone, either."

"What are you guys talking about?"

William jumped at the sight of Akane in the door. "Nothing!"

"Um… okay? Well, do you want me to take you back to the hotel?"

"Sure…" William shakily stood up, then collapsed in Akane's arms.

"You're shaking."

"You know that's because my muscles can't support me properly."

"No, I mean even where you're not using your muscles." Akane picked William up. "Are you nervous about something?"

"Maybe," William conceded. "Anyway, it's not something I want to talk about. Not now, anyway."

* * *

"This sure is nice," Emma commented.

"No kidding," Eallesander agreed. "I had no idea humans could dance in such beautiful ways. I didn't even know such amazing music existed."

Emma nodded. "That's a nice outfit you chose, by the way."

Eallesander looked down at the suit they were wearing, with the splash of various colors throughout the shirt. "Yeah. Hiromi helped me pick it out."

"Well, he certainly has good taste. What do you think of mine?"

Eallesander looked at the white strapless dress Emma wore. It was a simple design, with a simple, flowery texture. The line of iron studs down each of her arms were clearly visible, while her ears were more well-decorated than usual, with rhinestone-encrusted earrings that Eallesander guessed she had made herself. "Well, it contrasts really neatly with your hair, I like the earrings, and your arm studs match the dress a lot better than one might first imagine."

Emma smiled. "Thanks!" She looked up as the music stopped, then looked back at Eallesander. "Well, sounds like the next dance starts soon." She extended a hand towards Eallesander. "Shall we?"

Eallesander stared at Emma, thinking about this offer. "Do I get to dance the male part?"

"Whichever you prefer. This is your first formal ball, from what I hear. So shall we dance?"

Eallesander took Emma's hand and smiled. "I'd love to." The two of them walked out onto the dance floor.

As the dance began, two figures entered the ballroom. One of them wore a blue vest and tie that matched his hair, with a white button-down shirt and black dress pants. The person next to him wore a red dress that matched her short, scarlet hair, along with a pair of black jade earrings and a white pearl necklace. The maroon Fairy Tail guildmark overlapping the person's right eye gave away her identity as she nervously walked into the room next to Merlin.

* * *

"You alright, Elkhart?" Merlin asked.

"People are staring at me," Elkhart replied.

"Yeah. They've never seen you in particular dress this way. And those who know you always knew you as male. They'll take some time to get used to it."

"Well, look what we have here!" A familiar green-haired young man approached them dressed in royal attire. "So you finally came out, did you? Welcome to the club, Elkhart."

Elkhart smiled. "Thanks, Jonah. You know, the fact that the prince of this kingdom is trans kind of boosted my confidence. Anyway, since you can't really tell from one appearance, I'm genderfluid."

"Nice," Jonah mused. "I suppose it matches your eccentric personality."

Elkhart gave a small laugh. "I suppose so."

"Well, look at you!"

The three of them turned to see Nashi and Hiromi approaching them.

"Elkhart, you are rocking that look!" Nashi exclaimed.

"Hey, wanna join Sabertooth, since that's where all the queers seem to end up?"

Elkhart narrowed his eyes but continued to smile at Hiromi's dumb joke. "Perhaps you're forgetting Freed and Laxus, not to mention that Emma is lesbian, while my boyfriend here is pansexual."

"Wait… boyfriend?" Nashi inquired. "When did you…?"

"Two days ago," Merlin replied, his face turning red. "And I'm still getting used to hearing it from other people." He looked at Elkhart. "But I'm still not sure what to call you."

"Well, since I'm a girl at the moment, just call me your girlfriend for now," said Elkhart. "It might be confusing at first, but you'll get the hang of it."

"Right…" Merlin briefly thought about this, then turned back to Hiromi. "But yeah. You're not stealing my girlfriend."

"Are you sure?" Jonah asked. "We have a swimming pool."

Merlin grinned. "So do we."

"Wait… seriously? Carli never told us that!"

"Rule #2 when leaving Fairy Tail: don't reveal sensitive info about the guild or past clients."

Elkhart's eyes wandered over to where her parents were dancing, and she made direct eye contact with Erza, who took in Elkhart's appearance and simply smiled. Then Erza said something to Jellal, who glanced over and repeated the smile.

"You going to talk to them?" Merlin asked, causing Elkhart to jump in surprise.

Elkhart looked back at Merlin, then smiled and shook her head. "I don't think I have to. I'm pretty sure they understand."

Just then, Hisoka approached the group. "Hey. I see Elkhart came out to the public."

Elkhart turned to face Hisoka with a look of anger, stopping the water mage in his tracks.

"Ah." Hisoka bowed his head in shame. "You're still mad about that."

"Yeah, you're still an asshole."

"I'm sorry…"

"But you did what you did," Elkhart asserted, "and being sorry won't make it go away. Look at me, Hisoka."

Hisoka looked up.

"You're still my friend, and that won't change any time soon. But friends can get pissed at each other for legitimate reasons, such as eavesdropping on me when I was coming out to Merlin. Those actions have consequences."

"Yeah…" Hisoka wavered. Then he mustered a little more courage and began speaking more clearly. "Accidentally hearing something like someone's emotions is out of my control. But that's not what this was. I was actively listening in on some friends who thought they had privacy. I wasn't even expecting to hear a secret like that, but I was still listening for sensitive information, and even if it weren't specifically for sensitive information, it was something I had no business doing. Elkhart, I know it was a hurtful thing to do, and I have no intention of ever doing it again. I hate seeing my friends get hurt, but it's even worse when I'm at fault. Saying that I'm sorry won't make it go away, but I thought I'd at least acknowledge what I did once I got a grasp on it."

Elkhart looked Hisoka in the eye for about five seconds, then sighed and gave a brief smile. "And that's exactly what I needed to hear. Your apology is accepted, though it might take a day or two for me to completely forgive you."

"Right…" Hisoka acknowledged. "I do have this thing… a mental disorder. It prevents me from picking up on certain social cues, and prevents a natural understanding of social rules. I don't remember what it's called, though…"

"I do," Elkhart replied. "It's called autism. I have it, too."

"Wait… really?"

"Yup," Elkhart replied. "It's part of why I'm forgiving you so easily. I understand what it's like to lack that sort of understanding of people."

Hisoka smiled. "Thanks."

Elkhart looked over at Merlin. "Doesn't William also have it?"

"She thinks she might," Merlin replied. "But it's not important enough to her to ask Porlyusica about it."

Hisoka nodded and looked over at Nashi, who wore the same dress as Emma. "Wow! I'm surprised you two decided to wear matching outfits."

Nashi looked up from the plate of cookies she had been munching on, and her eyes narrowed with annoyance. "Don't even start on that."

"They coincidentally chose the same dress," Hiromi explained. "We were narrowly able to avoid a fight with the help of Lucy and Gajeel."

Hisoka laughed for a moment, further souring Nashi's expression, then doubled over in a fit of coughing. He stood back up, a small trickle of blood on the corner of his mouth. He grabbed a nearby napkin and wiped it off. "Don't worry about that. My lung just hasn't fully healed." He looked back at Nashi and noticed her foul expression. "Hey. You look beautiful in that dress, okay? And it's not the same color, at least. I see it's the same silver color as your arm."

Nashi held up her right arm to compare it to her dress, and realized Hisoka was right. She smiled warmly. "I hadn't noticed that. That's pretty cool!"

Hisoka looked out at the dance floor, then back at Nashi as he threw the napkin in the trash. "Anyway, the next dance is a waltz, and Porlyusica says I'm allowed to do gentle things like that." He offered his hand to Nashi. "Shall we dance?"

Nashi grinned as a few recent memories returned to her. "The first type of dance you ever taught me…" She set her plate down and took Hisoka's extended hand. "I'd love to!"

Merlin watched the two of them as they headed out onto the dance floor, then held out a hand. "Shall we?"

Elkhart took Merlin's hand. "I'd love to."

They walked out. Merlin placed his right hand on Elkhart's waist, while Elkhart placed her left hand on Merlin's shoulder. Then they joined their other hands and began stepping in time with the music, twirling fluidly around the floor.

Just then, Merlin had an idea. He sent a telepathic message to Elkhart, whose eyes widened in surprise. Then she pondered it for a moment and nodded. They leaned their heads towards one another.

Neither of them knew how to describe what the kiss felt like. Both were too lost in the moment to even form words in their head as their telepathy magic went off, causing each one to feel what the other was feeling, which in turn improved the experience as a whole.

* * *

Hisoka glanced over at Merlin and Elkhart as he and Nashi passed by, satisfied with the brainwaves he was hearing.

"What's that smile for?" asked Nashi.

"Nothing," Hisoka replied. "Their emotions. It's pretty nice."

"You should really try to stay out of people's heads," Nashi advised. "Isn't that what got you in trouble in the first place?"

"It should be fine. I was just commenting on their emotions, which I'm going to hear regardless of whether I'm listening." Hisoka fell silent, gazing into Nashi's large brown eyes as they moved around the floor.

Nashi looked back at Hisoka. "Am I really that fascinating to you?"

"Perhaps…" Hisoka cleared his mind, letting his body lead. Suddenly, his eyes widened. "Gah!" He quickly pulled away his left hand, which now had a trickle of blood from the skin between the thumb and forefinger.

"Huh?"

"Metal joints… near skin… not pleasant…" Hisoka sucked on the wound, then realized how dumb of an idea this was and pulled it out, pinching it with his other hand. "If I hold it like this, it should close in about ten seconds thanks to my healing magic."

"Sorry…" Nashi apologized.

"It's fine." Hisoka held the wound for a moment, then returned to the dance with Nashi. "Just be careful."

Nashi smiled as they continued to dance around the floor, looking up and down at Hisoka's black shirt and pants, combined with a leopard-print bowtie and suspenders. "You know, you look pretty fancy yourself."

"Thanks." He glanced around the room. "I wonder where Akane and William are."

* * *

"This is a nice, quiet place," Akane noted as he set William down in a chair.

"Yeah. I've been here a few times with Merlin, mostly to sleep through the dances."

Akane nodded. "It's definitely quiet enough for that, and not a lot of people will think to come here."

"Yeah, that's kind of why I wanted to come here with you."

"Hm?"

"You see, there's… something I've been wanting to tell you. I talked with Hisoka about it, which gave me the courage. Specifically regarding you."

"So… you gonna say it?"

William trembled for a moment. "Well, you see, I…"

Akane didn't get to hear the rest of it. Suddenly, William's image became the broken, bleeding form from the fight against the frost dragon. The floor, walls and ceiling fell away and were replaced by the dark, snow-covered landscape from back then. This time, however, Merlin didn't appear, and instead of the frost dragon, there was a black dragon that looked almost exactly like Acnologia, except with red markings instead of blue. Akane's breathing and heart rate quickened as the dragon looked him dead in the eye.

"Akane!"

The scene snapped back to the room, with William sitting in her chair, staring worriedly at Akane. "Are you alright? You were standing there, and suddenly you looked like you just had a nightmare."

"I… I think I did." Akane explained to William what he had seen.

"So… you didn't hear what I told you?" William's face turned slightly reddish.

Akane shook his head, still trembling.

"Well, I don't think I can repeat myself. Anyway, now I'm really worried about you. You're suddenly having nightmares while wide awake.

Akane sank to his knees, and William pulled him closer, trying to cheer him up with an affectionate embrace.

"I'm okay…" Akane told himself.

"We will get through this," William reassured. "I was there for what you experienced that day and even got the worst of it, and I will help you in any way I can."

* * *

 _The Grand Magic Games._

 _Remember those, Rika? Those were incredibly fun. Elkhart even came out and started dating Merlin. They're certainly cute, and Merlin misses Elkhart just as much as I miss you. The official guild of Dragon King disbanded, of course, as was the plan, but the team still stands._

 _Or at least, I think it does._

 _The team just isn't the same without you, Rika. Or without Akane, for that matter. I've said it and I will say it again: don't be gone for too long, Rika. I don't think I could handle it. Well… I'd have no choice, but it would be absolute hell for me. And please forgive me if I sound like a broken record, but I really hope you can find Akane. Either that or he returns on his own._

 _Sincerely, Hisoka_

* * *

 **Whew! That was the longest arc so far (which, coincidentally, contained the longest chapter so far). Anyway, this is not, of course, the end. There is much more to come. Hope you enjoyed!**


	42. Dragon Egg Arc - The Team's First Job

**Before you start reading, I'd like to make something clear.**

 **In response to the previous chapter, a hateful and honestly quite offensive review was posted, stating that I had ruined the story with "queer shit," a review that I have since deleted. In response to that review, I would like to say that I intend to represent groups of people who have historically been given a lot of shit just for being who they are, and that I will be treating them as actual people, not just using them as comic relief or villainizing them.**

 **Here are some rules which I would like to make clear about reviews on this fanfic:**

 **-Stating things you don't like about my story is perfectly fine, and any writing flaws you mention will be considered for future chapters.**

 **-If you would like to provide constructive criticism in more detail than just the few sentences typical for a fanfiction review, I would greatly appreciate it if you were to PM me (though I will not stop you from posting it as a review).**

 **-Any reviews that disrespect a group of people on the basis of race, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, disorders, disabilities, culture or other such things, or insult the story simply for representing and/or respecting said group of people, will be deleted. Reviews recommending ways in which I could do a better job of representing said groups of people, however, as well as other reviews of similar nature, will be read and considered for future chapters.**

 **And another thing, for the person who posted that review: if you really hate queer people to the extent that you think representing them has "ruined" my story, I honestly don't know why you've even read this far. I've made it clear in past chapters that members of the main cast are queer, mentioning all the way back in chapter 7 that Emma is a lesbian. And I'm sure you've figured out by my usage of pronouns that Eallesander is nonbinary. And these are just a few examples. You're kind of embarrassing yourself. Another thing I should mention is that I myself am queer. If you are so against queer people, I advise that you not read this fanfic, or any other work of mine that you might come across. It might be tainted by my "queer shit."**

 **To those of you who have read this far because you actually like the story and are perfectly fine with diversity (in other words, probably most of the people reading this): sorry about that. I just felt that it needed to be addressed. Please enjoy the chapter.**

* * *

 _July 6, X812_

 _This was the last day of the X812 Grand Magic Games. Dragon King was a guild that temporarily split from Fairy Tail for the purpose of being an all-dragonslayer guild in the Grand Magic Games. On the last day, this guild found themselves tied in first place with Hallowguard, another relatively small guild formed by a group of close friends. However, Natsu Dragneel, who was the last member standing on his team, which was in sixth place, came from behind and defeated both teams. It was quite something._

 _After this, the guild Dragon King disbanded and returned to Fairy Tail. They kept their marks, and agreed to continue being a team. Over the next month and a half, Hisoka and William recovered from the grave injuries they had suffered during the Games, while Elkhart optimized the design for Nashi's arm to make it more battle-ready. Akane fortunately didn't have another hallucination, but continued to have nightmares, some of which depicted the fight against the frost dragon as he remembered it, while others twisted the scene into things that Akane didn't understand. Emma and Merlin continued to train in their odd Redfox ways, such as sitting in waterfalls during thunderstorms and various physical exercises. Henri and Thomas visited New Extalia along with Happy, Charle and Panther Lily from time to time, and Thomas began training with Porlyusica. Overall, July was a month for recovering and passing time._

 _Now, let's jump ahead to August 22nd._

* * *

Hisoka stepped out of his bathroom, his hair quickly drying off as his skin absorbed the moisture, and smiled as he saw a familiar gray exceed sitting in his armchair. "Henri, you're back!"

"Indeed," Henri confirmed. "Also, you have a guest."

Hisoka turned his head and jumped in surprise. "Gah! How did I not see you?!"

"Yo!" Nashi was sprawled across the sofa, one foot propped up on the back. She waved casually, but Hisoka could sense tension in her brainwaves and her heartbeat. "Just wanted to see how you're doin'!"

"I let her in," Henri said. "So you can't say she came in uninvited this time."

Hisoka rolled his eyes. "I'm fine. Merlin removed the bolts three days ago, and the holes from that are nearly closed."

Nashi sat up, her cheerful expression shifting over to worry. She looked down, clenching her fists and trembling.

"Uh…" Hisoka could feel the heat radiating off of her, and wasn't sure how to respond to this.

(this dialogue takes the attention away from herself. She doesn't want to be emotionally vulnerable) Nashi tensed up, her jaws clenching as she muttered under her breath. "You idiot…" She looked up at Hisoka, a stern look on her face, though Hisoka could hear strong hints of relief and worry from her mind.

"Excuse me?"

"Don't ever do something so stupid again. You hear?" She pointed a finger at his face and heated up even more. "There are people who care about you. Don't go dying on them!"

"I'm certainly not planning on it," Hisoka replied, still taken aback by Nashi's outburst. "Anyway, I think I'm ready to go on a job. I can fly fine, and moving muscles around the injury only aches slightly. Hey…" He extended his arms, gesturing for an embrace.

Nashi leaned back in surprise, and Hisoka could now pick up hints of anxiety and embarrassment.

"C'mere. You could use the comfort." _Wait… why did I say that? That just sounded weird._

Nashi sighed, then leaned forward, letting Hisoka wrap his arms around her.

"I'm not the best with words, but this should help." He could hear Nashi's heart rate slowing and her emotions calming as the magic of his touch took effect. He started humming a calming tune to help with the process.

Nashi eventually broke the embrace, revealing a calm smile that turned to excited. "So you're ready for a job, you said?"

Hisoka nodded.

"Let's head to the guild, then!"

"You know, I'd like to go with the rest of the team," Hisoka suggested. "We kind of are a team now, aren't we?"

Nashi grinned. "That'll give me plenty of opportunity to test out my newly upgraded arm on Emma!" She held up her right fist.

"Um… well… the job's going to take priority over that," Hisoka reminded Nashi, but she had already jumped out the window. He sighed and flew out after her, gliding alongside her as she ran. "Any idea what kind of job you're interested in doing?"

"Not really," Nashi replied. "Although, since we're a team of dragonslayers, we could probably pick something really challenging. I mean, none of us are S-class, so we obviously can't do anything like that, but we can still do something hard, like fighting wyverns or something."

"Right…" Hisoka dropped to the ground and ran alongside Nashi. "Well, let's find out, shall we?"

Eventually, their pace slowed to a brisk walk, and they eventually made their way into the guild hall. Nashi glanced around, then made a beeline for the quest board.

Hisoka walked up to the bar. "Oi, Mira! Can you get me a steak sandwich?"

Mira nodded and sent Lisanna to the back room. After a few minutes, she came out and gave Hisoka a plate with the sandwich on it.

"Thanks!" Hisoka took a bite out of the sandwich as Nashi strode over and held up a poster.

"What about this one?"

Hisoka set down the sandwich and took the poster from Nashi, reading over the request. "Let's see… catching some cargo thieves… 300,000 Jewel?! These must be either some difficult thieves or some valuable cargo." He read over the paper again. "Well, both, it seems. We'd definitely want the whole team for this." He handed the paper back to Nashi. "Yeah, I think we can do this one."

"Wait… you're ready to go out on a job now?" Mirajane inquired.

Hisoka nodded. "Porlyusica said I could, since I'm pretty much completely healed."

"Well, I'm not sure you should be doing that one," Mirajane replied. "Not yet, at least."

"What do you mean?"

Mira bent down and reached under the bar, then stood back up with an envelope. "This one specifically requested your assistance."

"Huh? Me?" Hisoka took the paper, surprised. "Why me specifically? I'm not exactly that special."

"From Anna Heartfilia," Mirajane added.

"A request from Anna Heartfilia herself… I can see why this would be of such high priority, but I'm not sure why she specifically wanted me…" He unfolded the sheet of paper from the envelope and perked up out of surprise. "No way…"

"What is it?" asked Nashi.

Hisoka folded the letter up and placed it back on the bar, shaking his head. "No. I'm sorry, but I can't."

"Can't what?"

Hisoka turned to see Erza standing behind him.

"Hisoka is saying that he can't do the job that specifically requested him," Mirajane explained.

Erza nodded, then looked back at Hisoka. "Hisoka, is there some reason you can't do this job?"

Hisoka looked down at the floor. "I just… can't. I know why I was requested for this task, and as of today, that won't help. I'm sorry." He stood up and began to head toward the doors.

"Hisoka, wait!" Erza commanded. "Think about this. Anna Heartfilia has good judgement. If she chose you for this task, and the reason you think it is doesn't work, maybe that's not the only reason." She picked up the letter, then walked over and handed it to Hisoka. "Just consider it, okay?"

Hisoka took the letter and looked at it once more, then sighed. "I'll think about it." He continued out of the guild hall, and Nashi ran out after him.

"What was the job?"

Hisoka stopped in his tracks, standing there in silence for a moment. Then he turned to Nashi and handed her the letter. "Knock yourself out."

Nashi struggled to unfold the letter. "Ugh… maybe Elkhart could put some rubber grips on this thing." She finally managed to hold it open and read the letter with surprise.

 _Quest: Deliver a Dragon Egg to Safety_

 _Mission Details:_

 _I went into the woods for a walk, as I frequently do, when I came across a heavily wounded man carrying a large egg. I heard some other people coming, and the man asked me to take the egg and not worry about him. I asked him what these people wanted, and he quickly explained that these people must not get their hands on the egg, no matter what._

 _I took the egg back to my house, and after a quick examination, discovered that it was a dragon egg. Unfortunately, I cannot keep a dragon egg for very long. I am not equipped to care for this egg, let alone what will eventually hatch from it. It is my understanding that one of your wizards, Hisoka Dreyar, comes from a place bustling with dragons. I believe it is important to make sure that this young dragon can grow up in such an environment, with its own kind. The mission is to deliver this egg safely there, make sure it doesn't die, and keep on the lookout for anybody who might steal it. I trust Fairy Tail on this, as I have always trusted Fairy Tail._

 _Sincerely,_

 _Anna Heartfilia_

 _Specific Guild Members Requested: Hisoka Dreyar_

 _Reward:_ _2,000,000_ _J_

"A dragon egg?" Nashi asked incredulously. "Two million jewel?!"

Hisoka nodded.

"Why would you refuse this? Also, how did Anna know about you? I don't remember you two meeting."

"Henri and I ran into her about four years ago," Hisoka explained. "We conversed a bit, as well as staying with her for about five months. I told her where I was from, and she was relatively fascinated that the peaceful coexistence of humans and dragons had been achieved somewhere in the world."

"That's why she wanted you to deliver that egg."

Hisoka nodded. "Unfortunately, as you may remember from our fight with Soren, that's not exactly the best place for this egg."

"It's not just that, though, is it?"

Hisoka fell silent, realizing he had talked himself into a corner.

"You're afraid of what you'll find there."

Hisoka turned his back to Nashi. "I know not everyone would be in support of what's going on back there. However, I'm afraid of the possibility that the people I know will be in support of this. If I go on this mission, I'm basically asking to be stabbed in the back." He started walking. "I can't take the egg to the Far West Continent. I will, however, meet with Anna to discuss this request."

* * *

Merlin extended a tungsten pole, hitting Akane squarely in the stomach and knocking him to the ground.

"Well… done…" Akane grunted, taking a moment to catch his breath and then standing up. "You got a hit on me."

"Yeah…" Merlin stared disappointedly down at the pole as it shrunk back into his hand. " _A_ hit. I have a lot further to go if I want to be able to work on my own."

Akane sighed. "Look… soon enough, you'll be able to work with Will regularly again. She may not recover fully, but she's strong-willed, and that's important, too."

"True, but I still can't work with her all the time." Merlin covered his hand in titanium scales. "Let's keep training."

"Or we could go on a job together." Akane and Merlin turned to see Nashi, Hisoka and Henri cresting the hill towards them. "Where's Emma?" Hisoka continued. "I thought she was training with you guys."

"She went to go visit Sabertooth," Merlin replied. "What's this job?"

"It involves a dragon egg," Hisoka explained. "The details are unclear."

"What do you mean?" Nashi demanded. "It said specifically what we're supposed to do with the egg."

"But we can't do that, remember?" Hisoka pulled the envelope out of his sleeve. "It specifically requested me, because the request was that the egg be delivered to my home continent, but we can't take it there. We're meeting with the client to discuss what must actually be done."

"Wait… why can't you take it there?" asked Merlin.

"You'll find out later," Hisoka replied. "I'd rather explain it to everyone at once."

"Can Will come with us?" asked Akane. "Is it safe enough."

"It should be," Hisoka reassured, "as long as she's with us. Well, I guess we'll be heading to Sabertooth now."

* * *

"So where's Ealles off to?" inquired Emma. "I kind of wanted to hang out with them."

Hiromi shrugged, and Emma saw unease in his eyes. They were having a picnic on the outskirts of the city, and when Emma had asked that Eallesander come along, Hiromi had replied that they were absent. "We're not sure. They shouldn't be gone for more than a few days. Sometimes they'll want some quiet time to themself, but they never disappear for too long."

"Well…" Jonah stood up. "Hiromi and I were about to go off on a job with Carli. Sorry we couldn't hang with you for longer."

"That's fine," Emma reassured, grinning warmly as Hiromi stood up along with Jonah. Then her smile faded. "They've been gone for too long, though, haven't they?"

Hiromi stared at the ground. "Actually, yeah," he confirmed, then looked back up at Emma. "They haven't been back in over a week. Actually, they disappeared shortly after the last time you were here."

Emma's expression shifted to worry, and she just continued to sit cross-legged on the ground.

"Anyway, we have a job to go on," Jonah reminded. "They haven't been gone for quite long enough for distress."

Emma nodded absentmindedly as the Sabertooth mages jogged back toward the city. Then she looked up and glanced around, eventually spotting a large canine form accompanied by four flying figures. As they got closer, Emma could see two people riding the wolf, and the flying figures appeared to be two humans and two cats. She stood up to greet her teammates as Nashi and Merlin dismounted the wolf and Akane, Hisoka, Henri and Thomas dropped to the ground.

"Oneichan!" Merlin greeted. "We're going on a job!"

"Hisoka's ready?" inquired Emma.

"Yeah," Hisoka confirmed, getting out the letter. "In fact, I was specifically requested for this job."

"Seriously?" Emma glanced over at the giant wolf. "Got yourself a new mount, I see."

"He's not just a mount!" Nashi snapped. "He's a celestial spirit, and he can do more than just carry people."

"Yeah, like carry supplies."

"What was that?!" Nashi marched over and pressed her forehead against Emma's. "You trying to pick a fight, metal-head?"

"Just being honest. Gihi!"

"You know, Elkhart just upgraded the durability of my arm, and I'm eager to test it."

"And I've been training hard!"

"You think I haven't?"

"Would you two stop?!" bellowed Hisoka. "We have a job to take care of, alright? Can't we just get to it? We've still got to pick up William."

The two girls ignored him and began exchanging blows.

"Did you seriously think that would work?" asked Merlin.

"No…" Hisoka covered his face with one hand in disappointment. "That was just a reflex. But seriously, is there any stopping them when they get like this?"

"Until Will pinned them both to a wall, I didn't think there was. Elkhart may be able to, but he tends to not involve himself in things like this."

* * *

William held herself in a push-up position, her elbows bent slightly. She trembled for a moment, then her arms gave way and she collapsed on the floor. Her head perked up to the sound of someone knocking on her door. "Hold on!" She reached up to her bed, pulling herself into a sitting position, but she decided against trying to get back onto the bed. "Okay, you can come in."

The door opened, and Merlin walked in. His brow furrowed in concern. "Will, are you alright?"

"Yeah."

"There are bruises on your arms. I mean, other than the stains."

"I've been rehabilitating, and I will admit to having fallen a few times."

Merlin sighed, and William could tell from his tone and body language that he was still worried. "Anyway, we've got a job request, and we're wondering if you're up for it."

"Well, my arms are tired, but I should be fine," William evaluated. "What sort of job is it?"

* * *

Nashi's wolf spirit ran along the ground carrying Nashi, Emma and Merlin, while Akane, Hisoka, Henri and Thomas flew overhead, with William riding on Akane's back.

"This is really nice," Hisoka decided. "It's nice that Nashi got those keys, since most of us can't ride a train, and those of us with wings can only carry so many people."

"I will agree to that," Akane confirmed.

"By the way, why are you still carrying William? I would think she'd want to be with Merlin."

"Even if that wolf is good at running smoothly, he's not perfect, which isn't that good for my injuries," replied William. "Flying, on the other hand, is fine."

Hisoka glanced down at the others. "And Merlin had to stay down there to stop those two from fighting."

"It's fine," William reassured. "Traveling at different altitudes and being completely isolated from one another are two completely different things."

Hisoka nodded. Then he swerved upward and began gliding to the west.

"Oi, where are you going?!" called Akane.

"Keep heading to Anna's place!" Hisoka called. "I'll catch up later! I need to check on something!" he shot off into the distance before Akane could get another word.

Akane looked down at the others. "You guys hear that?"

"We're dragonslayers! Of course we heard that!" Nashi called back.

"Any idea where he's going?"

"Nope! Let's keep going! Come on, Lupus." The wolf surged forward in response to Nashi's command.

* * *

Anna glanced out her window and spotted a large shape approaching her hut, accompanied by three smaller flying figures. She closed the book she had been reading and headed over to the door, stepping outside to see Nashi, Merlin, William and Emma approaching them, as well as Henri and an exceed and human she didn't recognize. She looked around, frowning in disappointment as everyone came to a stop before her and the giant wolf dematerialized. "Where's Hisoka?"

"We're not sure," Nashi replied. "He said he needed to check on something, and that he'd catch up later."

"I see." Anna turned and headed back into the hut. "Well, come in. Make yourselves at home while we wait for him."

The others followed Anna inside. Nashi glanced around and eventually spotted a large egg with blue markings on it.

* * *

Soren looked up to the sound of approaching footsteps and saw Invel and Hisoka walking up to his cell. "Well, this is interesting."

"You have a visitor," Invel informed.

"Yeah, I noticed," Soren said. "What do you want, Hisoka?"

"First…" Hisoka turned to Invel. "…I'd like you to leave us. This is between me and him."

Invel nodded. "I will be waiting at the top of the stairs. _Don't_ try busting him out. I can freeze both of you in an instant." He turned and headed up the stairs.

Hisoka waited until Invel had disappeared around the corner, then sat cross-legged in front of Soren's cell. "Now, I'd like some information out of you."

"And you think I'll just give it to you willingly?"

"I can hear your brain."

Soren crossed his arms. "Doesn't work if I don't say anything."

"Yes, it does, actually," Hisoka corrected. "If I hadn't sensed your regret as we neared you, I would have walked right back up those stairs." He leaned toward the bars, a caring look in his eyes. "Soren, you still value me as a friend. And you don't think you were right in terrorizing those cities, do you? When you told me what happened to Flumentia, I listened to your mind, looking for deception. And while I didn't find that, what I did find was conflict. You were conflicted, and now you regret the decision you came to."

Soren grinned. "I see you've improved in the last seven years."

"Thanks." Hisoka smiled warmly for a moment. Then he clenched his fists, his expression turning to anger. "However, I still can't forgive you."

Soren sighed. "To be honest, I can't forgive me either." He shifted his position into one that more closely resembled that of Hisoka. "So, what is it you wanted to know?"

"I'd like to know about what's been happening with dragon eggs recently."

Soren's eyes widened.

"Specifically, what would result in an egg finding its way into Fiore."

"Interesting," Soren noted, placing a hand over his chin. "Well, the short answer is: Unugoladu."

"Who's Unugoladu?" Suddenly, Hisoka felt his heart pounding, and a sharp pain shot through his head. "Gah!" He clutched the sides of his head in agony.

"Flutlogia would know," Soren replied. "That's where your sudden headache came from. Your human brain isn't as good with dragon emotions, or with emotions from a foreign soul, so it translates into physical pain."

Hisoka grunted, then looked back up at Soren. "I guess Flutlogia won't be telling me much any time soon." The pain was still there, but he did his best to ignore it. "Anyway, what does this guy have to do with this dragon egg."

"For one thing, he's the one leading the plan to take over the world. He's using this special technique to manipulate the dragons who disagree with him into following him."

"Dragon manipulation… so he's a dragonslayer?"

Soren nodded. "And a powerful one, to have unlocked that technique. And you know the crazy thing? A few humans are actually supporting him, even though he's trying to establish a new order that puts them below dragons on the food chain."

"Right. I got that from your last message."

"However, dragon manipulation is broken too easily. It won't keep him in his position forever. He's been employing a new technique: indoctrination."

Hisoka's eyes widened. "No…"

"He's been stealing dragon eggs from their mothers, and training them to be loyal to him from the day they hatch."

"So that egg…"

"…was supposed to be indoctrinated, yes. Actually, I think I know whose egg it is."

"Who?"

"Driasol."

"Seriously…?"

"Yeah. Crazy, isn't it? And she fought pretty hard. Eventually, somebody snuck off with it, most likely with Driasol's consent. Those who supported the movement chased after the guy. I remember them heading to the west, so it's pretty interesting that he ran three-quarters of the way around the world."

"Yeah…" Hisoka stood up. "And now I know that I have to deal with this egg, and that I absolutely cannot take it back to our home continent." He took a few steps, then turned back momentarily, a look of sadness in his eyes. "I still can't forgive you, but thanks for the help."

Soren nodded. "Good luck."

Hisoka turned and ran up the stairs, out the exit and past Invel.

"What's the hurry?" asked Invel.

"Family matters," replied Hisoka. He sprouted his wings and flew out the window.

* * *

 **It took me a while to come up with a creative first job for them. I wanted to connect it to Hisoka somehow, but still keep it simple. Hope you enjoyed!**


	43. Dragon Egg Arc - Hisoka's Teacher

"Oh, Nashi," Anna began as she walked in with some tea and pastries, "ever since I first saw you in the Grand Magic Games, I've been meaning to ask – and sorry if I'm prying – what happened to your arm?"

"The short answer: being an idiot," Emma butted in.

Nashi whipped her head towards Emma. "Don't pretend you wouldn't have done the same! Besides…" She held up her right arm. "This was something completely different. It's true that it wouldn't have happened if I hadn't gone on the five hundred-year quest, but…"

"You went on the five hundred-year quest?" Anna asked incredulously. "You're lucky it was just your arm that you lost."

"Yeah, I'm aware," Nashi agreed. "It's good that I didn't go alone, as I'd initially tried to do."

Anna sighed in disappointment. "Well, I'm glad you're mature enough nowadays to admit to that. Luckily for you, this quest is nowhere near that level."

"I wouldn't count on that…" Nashi grabbed a cube of some sort of food matter and popped it into her mouth to taste it. She instantly gagged and spit it out. "Winged fish?!"

"Yeah, sorry," said Anna. "I was expecting Hisoka, and last I knew, he really likes winged fish."

"Well, thah hathn' tanthed abou' him." Nashi desperately tried to rub off the taste with her scarf.

"Oh, yeah," William remembered. "Anna-sensei, how do you and Hisoka know each other."

"Anna's the original reason Hisoka wanted to join Fairy Tail," Henri replied.

Anna nodded. "It was about four years ago…"

* * *

 _A little ways outside of Marigold Village_

 _September 19, X808_

"We're lost."

"No, we're not," Henri insisted. "I'm a cat, and cats have excellent senses of direction."

Hisoka pointed out a log that had a small gash in it. "I marked that log the last time we passed it. Admit it, Henri. We're going in circles."

"Well, maybe if I could concentrate, we wouldn't be." She stopped and glared at Hisoka.

Hisoka sighed. "Cats are supposed to be agile as well, and you just stare at large objects that are flying at you without moving."

"Because they don't kill me, and I don't feel like deciding which way to dodge," Henri retorted. She looked around the forest, then back at the log Hisoka had marked. "Okay, fine. We're lost."

* * *

"We were arguing about my sense of direction," Henri explained, "when Anna happened to cross paths with us."

"I heard them arguing," Anna confirmed. "I was going for a walk at the time."

"So what happened next?" asked Nashi.

* * *

"I take it you're not from around here?"

Henri and Hisoka jumped in surprise and turned to see the middle-aged woman standing before them. Her outfit and the way she wore her long, blonde hair reminded Hisoka of what he'd read about ancient civilizations. His eyes widened as he recognized the woman from his books. "You're Anna Heartfilia!"

Anna nodded. "I see you've heard of me."

"How could I forget the Dragon Master?" Hisoka asked incredulously. "You trained the five greatest dragonslayers in the kingdom, and you flew a ship into Neo Eclipse while taking Acnologia with you."

Anna sighed. "But it was the Dragonslayers and Fairy Tail which ultimately killed him."

Hisoka nodded. "But it was still pretty awesome, and they wouldn't have been able to do it without what you did."

"I suppose so," Anna agreed. "It was that action that separated his body and soul, and so when his body was sealed by Fairy Sphere, his soul was frozen."

Hisoka nodded excitedly. "And then Natsu was like… boom!" He swung his fist in a flashy manner, water engulfing his fist as he swung down at the log he had marked, breaking it in half.

Anna's eyes widened in surprise. "You're a dragonslayer?"

Hisoka looked back up at Anna and nodded. "I was taught by the river dragon Flumentia back on my home continent."

"There are still dragons?"

"Uh, yeah." Hisoka dropped his arms to his sides and just stared at Anna blankly. "There are tons of them where I used to live."

Anna stared at Hisoka, not knowing what to say.

"Well, anyway," Hisoka continued, holding out a hand to shake, "I'm Hisoka." He used his other hand to point at Henri. "And this is Henri."

Henri waved. "Hey."

"I see," Anna shook Hisoka's hand. "Well, from what I heard, you seem to be lost. Would you like to stay with me?"

Hisoka's eyes lightened up. "Really? I'd love to stay with someone like you! It would be an honor."

"Um, no," Henri argued. "I'm sorry, but we've got places to go."

Hisoka glared at Henri. "No, we don't! We're just traveling with no particular destination."

Henri sighed. "Well, we need to go to a town or city where we can sell these fish."

"What fish?" asked Anna.

"The ones in my requip inventory," Henri replied.

"An exceed with requip magic?"

"Is there something wrong with that?"

"No, it's just surprising, as few exceeds learn magic beyond Aera. Anyway, there's a village quite close to my house where you can sell your fish. I even work as a school teacher there."

* * *

"So I led them to my home," Anna continued.

"I didn't like your furniture at the time," Henri noted. "I still don't like it."

Anna sighed. "You don't like furniture in general."

"I'm not sure that's true," Nashi corrected. "She likes the furniture in their apartment."

"You got an apartment?" Anna inquired, looking at Henri.

Henri nodded. "Nashi was nice enough to point me and Hisoka to a rather nice one after we joined Fairy Tail."

"Actually, it's the same one my mom lived in before she moved in with my dad," Nashi added. "Oh, and about that conversation you said you had about 'killing' Acnologia…"

Akane flashed Nashi a warning look.

"I know," Anna interrupted. "Laxus and his team passed through here when they came back from Edolas."

Akane's eyes widened with fear. "He wasn't supposed to tell you! I asked that he keep it a secret." He looked back at Nashi. "And how did you know?"

"What are you talking about?" asked Anna. "Why would Acnologia's survival be kept a secret?"

"It's not that, it's…" Akane stopped as he realized what was going on. "I see, he didn't actually tell you that bit."

"What bit?"

Nashi held up her hands and waved them nervously at Anna. "I-It's nothing. You don't need to know!"

"I see…" Anna glanced at Akane, and he could see a glimmer of recognition. "Well, it would be really hard to hide from me, considering how much you look like him. Well, maybe not your hair, and your skin is a bit paler, but your face and your build are both the same."

"You weren't supposed to know!" Akane protested, his breathing growing heavier with panic.

Anna shrugged. "Well, I didn't know until I got a good look at you. I knew Acnologia really well before he… well… you probably know what happened."

Akane nodded, looking down at the floor. "That's why I hate letting people know." He looked back up at Anna, a worried look in his eyes. "What do you think of me?"

Anna shrugged. "I only just met you. But if you're looking for an assumption based on what Acnologia was like, I'd have to say that you are charming, you love your friends dearly and will protect them at all costs, you can't stand it when you're unable to, you're extremely careful with anything that could hurt your allies. Let's see… you're naturally cheerful and love spending time with your friends…" She thought for a moment. "You easily win someone over when your people-oriented personality, though it's hard for them to also win you over, but when they do, it's really easy to tell, from the glimmer in your eyes when you look at them, and, of course, the way you treat that person." She glanced at William, whose cheeks had turned a bit pinker, then back at Akane, who had glanced at William in response to what she had said.

"Well, that's certainly true," Emma agreed. "All of those things." She grinned at Akane.

"What? I don't look at you that way, and I thought you were gay. What interest would you have?"

Emma burst out laughing. "Not me, idiot. But I know who you do look at that way."

Akane's face began to resemble his hair. "I don't look at anyone that way!"

Emma rolled her eyes. "If Hisoka were here, he would confirm that you are lying."

Merlin nodded. "It's pretty obvious to the rest of us. At this point, we're in the 'will they or won't they' phase."

"What are you talking about?" asked William, who was also red in the face, though a bit less intensely than Akane. "I-I never noticed anything like this."

This time, Nashi, Merlin and Emma all burst out laughing.

"What?!" William demanded, her face heating up.

Merlin managed to stop laughing first. "Anna, just out of curiosity, how hard is it for the lucky fellow to notice this glimmer?"

Anna smiled with amusement. "It honestly depends on how easily flustered that person is. I personally noticed pretty quickly."

The laughing faded, and Emma looked up at Anna curiously. "Wait… you?"

Anna nodded. "Before the clash of the dragons, Acnologia and I fell in love. I eventually had a child. Unfortunately, Acnologia didn't even realize I was pregnant before he went mad. First he was busy fighting dragons. And after all his friends died, he went on a killing spree of dragons. I'd say the true tipping point into madness was when he failed to save a little girl in Crocus." A single tear ran down her cheek. "I never stopped loving him. I couldn't bring myself to hate him, even though I'm certain I should have."

Nashi's eyes widened with surprise. "Wait… are you saying I'm related to Acnologia?!"

Anna nodded.

Nashi looked over at Akane. "So basically, you're my great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great half-uncle?"

"Well, one less great than that," Anna noted. "But yes."

"How do you know?"

"I happen to keep track of my family line."

Merlin nodded in understanding. "So it _can_ be hard to tell if either Akane or Acnologia is in love with you, but not necessarily?" he inquired, shifting back over to that subject.

Anna nodded. "Being flustered can cause you to miss certain things."

William bared her teeth, grinding them together, then shakily stood up. "I need some air." She walked over to the door, stepped outside and slammed it behind her. She sat in the grass and then laid down, splaying out her arms, breathing heavily and deeply. She continued to tremble, not knowing what to think about anything. Her chest was literally aching from her heart pounding. "What do I do?" she said aloud. She glanced over to the sound of the door opening and closing, and tensed up in fear as she saw Akane.

"Sorry," Akane apologized. "I needed some air, too." He sat down next to William.

William sighed and stared up at the sky. "Ever have a bunch of things on your mind that you need to discuss with someone, but you can't say them out loud because you're afraid of revealing any of it?"

Akane nodded. "That's why I needed some air. What about you?"

"Yeah…" William replied. "Same here."

"I see." Akane looked down at William.

As William looked up at Akane, she saw a glint in his eye. She clenched her fists, grabbing fistfuls of grass in the process. "Look, you haven't 'won me over'. I don't have feelings for you. they don't know what they're talking about."

Akane's jaw shifted around, but his expression revealed nothing.

"Sorry to disappoint you." William sat up and turned her back. "But I'm not interested." As she looked away, her eyes widened in realization of what she had just said.

"Right… um… I didn't really ask…"

"Good." _Stupid William,_ she thought to herself. _What are you thinking? That was your chance! What did you even expect to achieve by saying that? You've probably ruined your chances with him._

The door opened once more, and Emma stepped out. "Hey guys, you ready to come back in? We've stopped talking about Akane's crush."

"I don't have a…!"

"Like I said, we stopped talking about it. Come on! Don't you want to hear the rest of the story about Hisoka?"

* * *

Henri hovered at the door. "Come on, Hisoka!" She called. "It's time to leave."

Hisoka came down the stairs, his luggage strapped to his back. "Fine," he sighed. They stepped outside. "You know, I'd really like to stay."

"I don't see any reason for that."

"Well, I'm afraid there's plenty of reason," Hisoka argued. "Henri, she can teach me."

"We have to go, Hisoka."

Hisoka stopped in his tracks, prompting Henri to stop as well. "Do we, though?"

"We have to keep traveling to get fresh groups of customers. It's good for our business."

"How important is it to make as much money as possible, though? We can stand to stay in one place for a bit."

"Not a small village like this."

"Really now?" Hisoka inquired. "Look, I lived in a community that had to travel to make sure our food supply didn't thin out! This isn't like that! Sure, fresh customers will buy more in one day than old customers, but that's not fully necessary. Even with regular customers, we'd still make enough to live comfortably. And sure, I love the traveling and the extra money, but there are things more important to me. I was never able to really hone my magic, and I want to get stronger. Flumentia said it was dangerous for me back at home. Maybe if I get strong enough, I can return and see Flumentia again." His eyes watered. "Can't we do something important to _me_ for a change?"

Henri sighed and dropped to the ground, standing and thinking. She looked back up at Hisoka. "All right. Let's go talk to Anna."

Hisoka smiled and stepped back inside, followed by Henri. "Oi, Anna-sensei?"

"Hm?" Anna poked her head out of the kitchen.

"Are you, um… willing to take on an apprentice?"

Anna withdrew back into the kitchen. A few moments later, she walked out. "You want to be my apprentice?"

Hisoka nodded. "I never really fully mastered dragonslayer magic, you see, and you taught the five greatest dragonslayers in the kingdom, so…"

"Their dragons did most of the teaching, actually."

"But they wouldn't have quite gotten there if not for you."

Anna nodded. "You have a point. I suppose I could. Aside from teaching at that school, I have a lot of free time on my hands."

Hisoka's eyes brightened. "Is that a yes?"

Anna nodded.

Hisoka raised his clenched fists up next to his head, grinning and trembling excitedly.

Henri sighed. "Come on, Hisoka. Let's go unpack your stuff."

* * *

"Did he really look like that?" Nashi asked curiously.

"Yes he did," Henri confirmed. "His reactions can be rather random, can't they?"

"You got that right. I suppose it depends who he's around."

"It does. He confirmed it himself."

"With some of the reactions he has, I didn't think he was aware."

"I think it's just that he doesn't care how weird they are."

Nashi nodded understandingly. "To be fair, I do some things others think are weird without really caring. Like, Hisoka seems to find it weird that I enter his apartment through his window."

Henri shrugged. "I don't think you're the weird one there," she corrected. "I go in through the window all the time."

"I know, right? But yeah, Hisoka is pretty weird."

Akane rolled his eyes. "It's normal for a cat to enter through the window, since you're so small, but doors are made for humans, and windows are primarily for lighting and looking outside."

"True, true," Nashi acknowledged, waving a finger at Akane. "There's nothing wrong with weird. It's a perfectly normal thing to be."

"Uh… weird and normal are kind of opposites," Merlin pointed out. "You're the weird one."

"Exactly! Even I'm weird. It's a perfectly normal thing to be and is nothing to be ashamed of."

"That's not what I was saying…"

"I fully agree," Thomas piped in. "Why does everyone see weird as a problem?"

Emma glanced anxiously at where William had previously been sitting. Akane had come in alone after that chaos about crushes, explaining that William had chosen to stay outside for a little more of a breather.

Anna sighed. "You seem like you could all use a breather. You keep talking about random things in the middle of the story. Why don't you all go do your own thing for a bit?"

Emma got up and went outside to see William still lying down in the grass. "Hey, sis."

William glanced over at Emma. "Hey, Emma."

Emma sat down in the grass. "I'm really sorry about what happened in there. We let it go too far."

William rolled her eyes. "Ya think?"

"Look, I know it was stupid of us to keep teasing you about it. But Akane's gotten over it. Why are you still out here? I know some people need more space than others, but I also know you really well. What's really on your mind?"

William shrugged.

"It might help you shake it off if you tell someone. C'mon."

William sighed. "Well, ever do something really stupid? Where you have no clue as to why you did it, and it results in the exact opposite of what you wanted to happen?"

"Like, telling a lie that's the exact opposite of what's going on your head, when you wanted to tell someone the truth?"

William's eyes widened. "How did you know?"

Emma chuckled. "Remember when I used to date Carli?"

"Yeah."

"Well, before we started dating, I got kinda nervous around her for several months. In fact, once we were alone, and she told me she had a crush on me. I panicked and immediately declared I had no feelings for her. As I walked away, I was internally ranting about what an idiot I was for saying the exact opposite of what was going on in my head when the opportunity was perfect."

"Whoah." William stared at the clouds overhead, thinking.

"And now, you're giving off the same vibe."

"I figured you were about to say that."

Emma nodded. "Well, I suppose I should just be honest and straightforward about this: I overheard your conversation with Akane."

William sat up and sighed. "Well, I guess I shouldn't be surprised." She stood up. "Come on. Let's get further from the others, and I'll tell you the complete truth." She walked a few steps toward the woods, then looked back to make sure Emma was following. "Come on, sis!"

* * *

 _December 9, X808_

Hisoka looked out the window with disappointment. "Aw, it's snowing? And we were going to do training today!"

"Actually, that's why I picked this day," Anna corrected as she came down the stairs.

"Well, you shouldn't deliberately pick days like this for an excuse to cancel," Hisoka complained. "If you want a break, at least be honest about it."

"That's actually the opposite of my intentions," Anna replied. "I thought the snow would be a perfect teaching opportunity for you and your element."

"What do you mean?"

"Get dressed for outdoors and I'll show you."

Hisoka stood there for a moment, confused. Then he decided not to waste any time and ran up to his room to get some warmer clothes on. He then ran downstairs and out the door, where Anna was waiting. "So, what did you want to show me?"

"I've shown you a few fighting moves, as well as ways to use your magic in everyday life. Now I'd like to teach you how to do things with your magic that you wouldn't ordinarily expect. Look around you. What do you see?"

Hisoka scanned the landscape. "Snow. As well as your house, which is also covered in snow." He looked up and tried catching a snowflake on his tongue.

"And tell me, Hisoka. What is snow made of?"

"Um… ice? Snowflakes are just tiny ice crystals formed in the clouds when it's cold enough."

"Indeed they are. And tell me, what is ice made of?"

"Water." Hisoka grinned as he realized what Anna was talking about. "You're saying I can manipulate the snow?"

"Why don't you try it for yourself?" Anna suggested.

Hisoka extended a hand, then waved it in a fluid motion, as if he were trying to manipulate a pond or lake, focusing on the snow as he did so. The snow fluffed up, but otherwise didn't respond. He tried the same motion he normally used to lift water toward his hand. He could hear the snow shifting around, but barely saw anything happen on the surface. "I mean, it's responding, but I don't see how something like this would be useful."

"Remember that this material is in a different state from what you're used to."

"I'm not really sure how that's supposed to help."

"You're treating the snow as if it's still a liquid. Those motions work for liquids, but not for solids. What you're working with here is more of a powder. Think beyond what you've already learned."

"Beyond what I've learned…" Hisoka closed his eyes, thinking, focusing. He extended his consciousness, feeling the snow as he felt his own body – the crystalline structure of each individual snowflake, including the ones that were still falling. Then, with one swoop, he spread out his arms in a stiff but still smooth motion, taking the snowflakes with him. He even heard the snow responding and smiled as he opened his eyes to see a surprised Anna.

"You have wings?"

"Huh?" Hisoka turned his head to see a pair of fin-like wings that closely resembled those of Flumentia. "I have wings?!" He looked further behind him to see that the snow had morphed upward to vaguely resemble a pair of wings. However, Hisoka's surprise had broken his concentration, and the snow wings fell over on the house, covering the window in snow and obstructing the view of an impressed Henri. He looked back at Anna.

"Based on your reaction, I'm assuming you didn't know you could do that?" Anna guessed.

"Well, I've been trying to for years," Hisoka replied. "You see, my friend Akane learned Aera from an exceed that lives in a village with him, so when I met Henri, I realized it was my chance. But I've never been able to do it, until now…" The wings dematerialized. "My only intention with that motion was this…" He pointed out the area around him, where the snow had been cleared into two large piles on either side of him.

"Anyway, want to try something else with the snow?" Anna suggested.

Hisoka grinned, then walked over to one of the piles. He stuck a hand in it, then pulled out a large mass of snow that now stuck to his fingers. He made a crushing motion, which in turn caused the snow to compress into a ball, then threw it underhand, releasing it with incredible speed. It rolled along, picking up more snow until it rolled to a stop, about the size of a house. He tried it a few more times, but the next few snowballs either fell apart or failed to pick up any snow. "Okay, so the first one was just luck. I guess I should work on that one."

"Want to try something else?"

"Might as well," Hisoka agreed. "Although I'd like to go inside in a few minutes. It's starting to get cold."

* * *

"Wait… _you_ taught him Aera?" Nashi asked incredulously.

"Sort of," Anna replied. "I told him what he needed to hear."

"Whatever," Henri scoffed. "I taught him the basics."

"Well, you didn't do a good job of it," Thomas teased. "I was able to teach Akane in a span of four months. _And_ we were both suffering from midnight sun madness."

"Midnight sun?" asked Nashi curiously.

"A thing that happens in the north," Akane explained. "The planet's tilted, which causes seasons by changing the amount of daylight, among other things. And when you get closer to the poles, there will be times in the summer when the sun is up all night."

"Cool, so what's midnight sun madness?"

"The constant sunlight hinders one's ability to sleep," Thomas replied. "And that can affect people in many ways." He looked over at Henri. "And I still taught him in that short of a time."

"Teaching's not my strong suit." Henri took a sip of her tea.

* * *

 _March 7, X809_

Hisoka and Henri headed out the door. Hisoka took one last wave at Anna. "Goodbye, Anna-sensei! Thanks for teaching me!"

"My pleasure," Anna shot back. "And one more thing: if you want to grow and develop even further, I would suggest joining a wizard guild."

"A wizard guild?"

"Yeah. You make friends, form bonds… those friends can take you a long way."

Hisoka smiled. "In that case, I have a guild in mind."

"Not yet," Henri commanded. "You can wait until you're older."

"Aw, come on!" Hisoka complained. "I'm twice as old as Cana was when she joined."

"You're not Cana. Besides, you should probably do some more studying about how guilds work before you go joining one."

Hisoka gave Henri a dirty look, then grinned deviously. "Challenge accepted. I'm gonna join Fairy Tail!" He waved at Anna one last time. "Goodbye, Anna-sensei!"

Anna smiled. "Goodbye for now, Hisoka." She smiled to herself as she stepped back into her house. "Honestly, Fairy Tail, you inspire so many youngsters."

Nashi smiled as the story came to a close. "Those were only bits of what happened, though. Can we hear the whole story?"

"How about you ask Hisoka when he gets here? I'm sure he'd love to share stories with his team."

"I suppose." Nashi turned to the sound of the door opening, and saw Emma and William walking back in. "Hey, you missed a bunch of the story! Come on, William, it's not that embarrassing to…" She was cut off as Emma's fist connected with her jaw and she fell on the floor. As the got up, she was met by Emma leaning in really close to her face.

"Don't… you… dare!" Emma spelled out. "Not another word!"

As Nashi stared wide-eyed, there was the sound of something tumbling to the ground outside. She jumped up, hitting her head on Emma's face in the process, and threw the door wide open to see Hisoka curled up on the ground, clutching his left side, a look of agony on his face. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine…" Hisoka grunted. "Just give me a minute…" He laid there for a moment, then pushed himself into a sitting position and painfully stood up. "I tumbled a bit in the landing. I didn't take a break when my side started hurting, you see, so I wasn't able to control myself too well."

"Why didn't you stop to rest?" Merlin demanded. "You know your ribs aren't fully healed."

"Because I was in a hurry to get here." Hisoka limped past them and looked over at Anna. "Where is it?"

Anna pointed over to the egg, which was sitting on the hearth.

"That egg," Hisoka panted, "is my niece."

* * *

 **I don't really have much to say in regards to this chapter. Nevertheless, hope you enjoyed!**


	44. Dragon Egg Arc - Warm Blood

Nashi stared at Hisoka, not knowing what to say or think.

"Your niece?" Emma inquired.

Hisoka nodded.

Merlin pushed through the others and went over to Hisoka. "Okay, first of all: what? Second: what the hell?"

"Allow me to rephrase that," said Hisoka. "That dragon egg is Flumentia's granddaughter."

"Wait… how can you tell it's female?" asked Nashi.

"The coloring. Male eggs are mostly white with a few dragon markings, while the white on the female eggs takes on a slight tint of the same hue as the markings."

"Um… it's white."

"It's a very slight tint," Hisoka replied. "It takes incredible color sensitivity to see it."

"Yeah, I can see it," Akane piped in.

Emma stared at the egg intently. "Come to think of it, me too."

"Okay, fine," Nashi conceded. "But also, why didn't you tell us on the way here?"

"I didn't know."

"And you know now?"

Hisoka nodded.

"Hisoka, where exactly did you go when you split off from the rest of us?" William asked.

Hisoka looked around the room at the team. They all looked and sounded curious, and like they weren't going to just leave it. He sighed. "I, um… went to see Soren."

Nashi's reaction was the loudest, while the others just gave him surprised looks. "You what?!"

"Sorry. I know that was stupid, but…"

"Actually, I'm just surprised that you were willing to talk to him," Nashi corrected. "You think you can trust what he says, though?"

"I'd know if I couldn't." Hisoka tapped his ear. "And he knows that. Anyway…" He turned to Anna, who had just been standing and watching. "…we need to discuss the terms of this mission. A lot has changed since we last spoke."

Anna nodded and gestured for Hisoka to sit. "Let's hear it, then."

Everyone gathered together on the two sofas.

"I can't take that egg to my home continent," Hisoka declared. "That place is no longer safe, especially for any of my family."

"What about your sister?" Akane asked. "Torden said he met her just a couple years ago."

"Holding your own and being in a safe place are two different things. And for a dragon egg or a hatchling, that's even worse. Anna-sensei, we need to change the mission objective. The destination, at the very least."

"What, exactly, has changed?"

"Some guy named Unugoladu. Flutlogia apparently knows about him, but won't tell me anything. He's been tearing down Flutlogia's legacy, and that includes killing me, as well as controlling the dragons. This egg is my family. I can't let her get caught up in it."

"I see… well, then…" Anna stood up and knelt next to the egg, checking to make sure it was still the right temperature. "…I think I will change the mission. I will entrust you with the task of finding a safe home for this egg, and I will be raising the reward to three million jewel…" She stood up and grabbed a necklace with a blue lacrima that pulsated with light. "…as well as this."

"Another fallen star," William whispered, remembering the Anima crisis.

"Actually, that's a tidestone," Hisoka corrected. "I'm not sure where you got 'fallen star' from."

"It's the same kind of lacrima we used to deal with the Anima," William explained. "It fell from space."

"Not this one," Hisoka replied. "This one came from my home continent. There's a giant cave system there with millions of these. They're useful for storing spells, souls, spells _and_ souls…" He pulled out his symphonica. "Even this thing's made of tidestone."

"And that one has Flumentia's soul in it," Akane added, pointing at the one Anna was holding.

"What?!" Hisoka stared wide-eyed at Akane, then at the stone, then back at Akane. "How do you know?"

"I'm actually not sure," Akane admitted. "It just looked like her."

"Uh…"

"I guess it's one of my weird cognitive things, like when I didn't recognize Edolas counterparts. I mean, I'm assuming so, considering how confused you're acting."

"Yeah, I would also assume so based on how confused I am," Hisoka agreed.

"What are you guys talking about?" asked Anna.

"Akane sees things weirdly," Hisoka explained. "Use disguise magic that makes it so someone doesn't even vaguely resemble themself, and Akane will recognize them with no awareness of the disguise, but show him a clone of someone, and he'll have no clue who it is."

"I mean, you can tell me about the disguise magic and _then_ I'll be aware of it."

"Fair enough."

"Anyway, yeah. That's Flumentia's soul in that tidestone."

Hisoka stood up and approached Anna. "Not just her soul. I'm sensing some powerful, complex magic, and I recognize it. Don't you?" He turned back to Akane.

"Yeah," Akane realized. "Yeah, I do."

"What are you guys talking about?" asked Nashi.

"The soul fusion ritual," Hisoka replied. "All of the magic from the soul fusion ritual is stacked perfectly within this lacrima." He turned back to Anna. "How did you get this?"

"The same person who had the egg also gave me this," Anna explained. "That is also partially why I requested you for this job, so I could give it to you like he asked me to." She held it out to him. "I said it would be part of the reward for the quest, but it seemed important, and what you just said sounds consistent with that. What is a soul fusion ritual anyway?"

"What Akane and I underwent," Hisoka explained. "We're fourth generation dragonslayers, which means our souls were fused with those of dragons." He took the lacrima.

Nashi stood up and walked over. "Can I see?" She reached out a hand.

Hisoka's eyes went wide and he pulled the crystal back, using his other hand to smack Nashi's away. Then he shook his hand in pain, mentally noting that one should not punch metal.

"What was that for?"

"Don't touch it," Hisoka warned, "unless you want to get yourself killed."

"Why would it kill me?" Nashi asked.

"You are, in effect, a first generation dragonslayer. If you were to touch this, it would automatically trigger, and your element is too different from Flumentia's. You'd never survive having your soul fused with hers." He looked over at Emma and the twins. "That goes for you as well."

"But what if I use this arm, since it's not entirely a part of my body?"

"It's also extremely conductive of ethernanos and is connected to your magical reserves. I'd rather not risk it."

"Alright, that's fair."

"What if I handled it with an iron club?" asked Emma.

"Despite the fact that tidestones are hard enough to survive something like that, that would actually be worse, since it would come into direct contact with your magic."

Emma nodded. "I see. Good to know."

"Anyway…" Hisoka put the tidestone in an inner pocket, then went over to the egg and picked it up. "Nashi, quick. We need you keeping it warm."

"Right." Nashi went over and took the egg.

"Just slightly warmer than it currently feels, since it just had a few seconds to cool down."

"Yeah, I know how to incubate an egg."

Hisoka tilted his head out of curiosity. "Really? When?"

"A few times, actually," Nashi replied. "I accepted a job request from a farm, asking for a fire mage, since they didn't have enough chickens for as many eggs as they had."

"Yeah, I remember that!" agreed Emma. "The chickens laid a ton of eggs, and the farmer decided to sell the extra chicks when they hatched. And you burned his barn down!" She burst out laughing.

"Um… it doesn't sound like you were successful…"

"And then I took a few more requests like that over the years," Nashi retorted, cutting Hisoka off. "I got better at it. In fact, that original farmer decided to teach me how to control my flames more effectively. I actually sort of became a professional human incubator."

"And yet, you're completely out of control when fighting."

"Duh. I'm trying to crush my opponents in those situations. You think I'm trying to crush this egg?" Nashi set the egg back down on the hearth.

"Of course not. It's just that I've never seen you with that kind of control over…" Hisoka stopped suddenly as Nashi placed a hand on his shoulder. Immediately, heat spread evenly throughout his body. He didn't even feel the slightest temperature difference between his skin and his insides. "Oh…" It felt weird, like he was hotter than he should be able to take, but he wasn't sweating, and he didn't feel uncomfortable with the intense heat. It was more of an embracing warmth, the kind of warm that one would use in the phrase "warm smile" or "warm welcoming". It felt – peaceful.

"That's how good I am at this." Nashi's expression was blank, but in a way just as warm as the feeling she was giving Hisoka. She removed her hand and the feeling subsided.

"That was…" Hisoka shook his head, still dazed by the whole experience. "I don't know what to say."

"Yeah, it can have that effect on people, especially if it catches them off guard. My parents are almost _constantly_ snuggling because my dad can do that." She stuck her tongue out in a disgusted manner.

"I can certainly see why," Hisoka replied. "It kind of leaves me wanting more."

"Don't count on it."

"Right. Anyway, I guess we should get going?"

Nashi picked the egg back up and walked out the door. "Yeah, let's go."

The others got up from the two sofas and followed Nashi out the door. Nashi then summoned Lupus and climbed on, being extremely careful with the egg.

"Hey Emma," said Hisoka, "can I trust you not to attack someone who's carrying something like an egg?"

"No, I wasn't going to do that. Why?"

"Well, we kind of had Merlin riding with you and Nashi to stop you from fighting, but I'm thinking maybe I could take him, so he can be with William."

"Uh…" Merlin looked between Hisoka and Emma. "Are you sure they can be trusted?"

"You don't give me enough credit, Merlin," Emma complained. "You really think I would risk the life of a young, defenseless creature?"

"She's being genuine," Hisoka added. "And surprisingly, she doesn't sound careless, like people do when there's still a good chance they'll accidentally break a promise like that. It'll be fine."

Emma climbed up onto Lupus, while Merlin got a secure grip on Hisoka, and the team took off.

* * *

"Do you even know where we're taking the egg?" Henri asked.

Hisoka thought about this for a moment. "Not really, no."

"Then where are we going?" Henri asked.

"I'm not sure… I just thought it might come to me."

"You know that rarely works. You definitely shouldn't let something so important depend on it."

"I know." Hisoka looked over at Nashi, who was still calmly embracing the egg, sitting on her own. It was late afternoon, and they had decided to take a break. "I just… really don't know what to do in this situation. The one dragon place I know of is off the list, and we can't just have a baby dragon in the guild. A fully grown dragon who knows his manners is one thing, but even with a dragon as a parental figure, a baby dragon in training can be really destructive. As crazy as it may sound to you, a baby dragon can be more destructive than Emma and Nashi."

"I heard that!" Nashi called.

"Well, how long until the egg hatches?" asked Henri, ignoring Nashi's retort.

"About a week, based on the way it sounds."

"You can determine that based on sound?"

"What, you think brainwaves are louder than a developing embryo? There's the heartbeat, for one thing."

"That is a fair point."

"Anyway, why do you ask?"

"We have a week to figure out what to do," Henri replied. "I say we take it back to the guild for now."

"I guess that would make sense. It's too dangerous to travel with it when we don't know where we're going."

"Yeah. I can't egg-sit forever," Nashi agreed.

Hisoka stood up and walked over to Nashi. "That is another fair point." He knelt and placed a hand on the egg. Like she had done with him back at Anna's house, she was keeping the egg warm, but not too warm. He smiled. "Time limits aside, though, you're really good at this. Thank you."

"Least I could do," Nashi returned.

Hisoka glanced around the clearing and saw Merlin, Emma, Akane and Thomas having some conversation about sandwiches. He glanced around some more and saw William lying on the ground some distance away. He jogged over to see that she was staring absentmindedly at the sky, and he could hear something like stressed contemplation. He sat down next to her. "You alright?"

William jolted in response to the sudden presence and looked over at Hisoka, then back at the sky. "Yeah, I guess."

"How many times do I need to tell you…?"

"Yeah, I know," William interrupted. "You can tell I'm lying." She sighed and sat up, getting out her rune pen.

"What are you…?"

"Just some precautions." William began writing in a ring around them. "Before I tell you anything, I want to make sure nobody else can hear us." She finished writing and sat cross-legged, facing Hisoka.

"It's about Akane, isn't it?"

William rolled her eyes. "What gave it away?" She looked down at the ground. "Basically, I'm a complete idiot."

"What happened?"

William sighed again. "I told him."

Hisoka's eyes widened with surprise. "Then why are you…?"

"Or at least I tried to." William cut him off. "We were sitting outside, alone. He has feelings for me. I could see it in his eyes. So I tried telling him, but what came out was the exact opposite. I have no idea what I was thinking!"

"It sounds like you panicked," Hisoka suggested. "It happens. It can occur in the most irrational moments. You consciously were convinced he would share your feelings, but deep down, you're still afraid."

"But I had every reason to be able to confidently tell him!" William protested. "I had no doubts!"

"You're lying."

William gritted her teeth in frustration. "But I shouldn't have!"

Hisoka placed a hand on William's shoulder, causing her breathing and heart to grow a bit calmer.

"Now… I've ruined it…" A teardrop fell into her lap.

"No, you haven't," Hisoka reassured. "Yeah, you've put yourself in an unfortunate situation. So did I when I decided to be in that contest at the Games, and when I jumped in front of Akane's blade." He opened his overcoat and lifted up his undershirt, showing William his new scar. "So did Nashi when she decided to go after her parents." He closed his overcoat back up, then pointed a finger at William. "And so did you when you fought the frost dragon. Did any of us let any of those drag us down?"

"No…"

"So why should this be any different? If you think about it, dealing with your love life isn't that much harder than dealing with any other part of your life. Why should you let this drag you down when nothing else ever did?"

"I don't know…"

Hisoka nodded. "It's that same uncertainty that made you panic. Look, you can do this. I believe in you. so why don't you believe in yourself?"

"Well, I still really need some alone time, no matter what you say."

Hisoka sighed and stood up. "Right. Well, please don't beat yourself up like that. I can't stand to see my friends like that." He began to walk back over to the others, then stopped suddenly as he heard footsteps – those of people who were trying to sneak up on someone. He whipped around in time to see a magic bullet fly towards William, and dove towards her, knocking her out of the way and yelping in pain as the bullet hit him in the ankle.

"Ow…"

"Sorry, I had to." Hisoka scrambled to his feet to see a few people dressed in heavily obscuring clothing run towards the main camp. "Oh, no you don't! Kawatatsu no Juatsukiri!" He sent a drill of pressurized water at one of the bandits, striking them in the small of the back and sending them flying past Nashi. He then limped over next to Nashi, determined to protect the egg.

"Hisoka, I can't fight and keep the egg's temperature at the same time."

"Yeah, I figured. That probably requires a lot of concentration." He stared angrily between the bandits. There were around a dozen of them aside from the one he had just stunned, all holding magical rifles.

"Hand over the egg," one of the bandits demanded – a male voice. "You're outnumbered, and that egg'll fetch a hefty price."

"Shinkuryuu no Houkou!" A cone of crimson energy engulfed three of the bandits.

"Tetsuryuukon!" Four iron poles took out another four bandits, knocking them to the ground.

"Really, now?" Emma inquired. "It doesn't look like that to me. You're lucky Merlin and I didn't break their spines."

The remaining five bandits stared wide-eyed at their incapacitated companions.

Hisoka stepped in front of Nashi. "That egg is my niece, and you are not touching it." A look of murder crossed his face.

The bandits looked confused, then looked around at their situation. They then picked up their fallen companions, with a couple of beefy ones picking up two each, and they fled past William, deciding to ignore her for fear of provoking the others.

Hisoka turned to Nashi. "You didn't let that egg overheat or get too cold, did you?"

Nashi shook her head. "No, but it was really hard."

"Yeah. Sorry you couldn't fight there. I know it wasn't what you hoped for."

"It's fine."

"You sure?"

"Yeah. It's really nice taking care of something."

* * *

Hisoka glanced across the campfire at Nashi. The others had already gone to sleep, save for Henri, who was flying around their campsite as first watch. "You okay?"

"This is really stressing me out," Nashi complained. "I don't think I can hold this much longer. That fight really shook me."

Suddenly, Hisoka had an idea and walked over to sit next to Nashi. "Maybe I can help." He placed a hand on her left arm, momentarily tracing the tattoos. Immediately, he felt the warmth Nashi was putting into the egg, and could sense her tenseness letting up.

"Yeah, I think that's helping."

Hisoka smiled and began to remove his hand, which was immediately grabbed by Nashi.

"Stay," Nashi asserted. "I can't stay up all night like this. I think this could help me do it in my sleep."

"Alright." Hisoka placed his hand back on the egg, then brought his other hand around to hold Nashi's right hand. The metal, like the flesh, felt comfortably warm. "This really is a soothing feeling."

"I'd say the same to you."

Hisoka nodded in agreement as his consciousness slipped into the calm senselessness of dreams.

Henri looked over at the two sleeping dragonslayers, smiling at the peaceful look on their faces. She pulled a camping blanket out of her requip inventory and threw it over them. "Goodnight. We've got a lot of work tomorrow."

* * *

 **So, yeah. Hisoka is a dragon's uncle. What are the odds? Also, I haven't really commented on the character development lately, or the relationship dynamics between them. The reason for this is that I'd rather you enjoy or not enjoy that bit on your own (although, if you've read this far, you're most likely enjoying it). Hope you enjoyed!**


	45. Dragon Egg Arc - A Bigger Problem

Porlyusica placed the egg in the incubator and stared at it intensely, analyzing its condition. Then she stood up and turned to the team who had brought it to her. "Well, I am genuinely surprised, but it is, in fact, still alive and well."

Hisoka rolled his eyes. "You could have just believed me. I know a heartbeat when I hear one."

"And I was astounded to hear that you kept a dragon egg at the right temperature for over fifty hours." She looked at Nashi as she said this. "It can be mentally and emotionally strenuous to maintain steady warmth just for five hours."

"I kind of had help," Nashi explained. "Hisoka was able to regulate the stress."

"He was?" Porlyusica turned to Hisoka.

"I can calm emotions, remember?" Hisoka reminded. "It happens to anyone I touch. All I had to do was maintain some kind of physical contact."

"For over two days? Even maintaining that can still be stressful for you. How did you hold it with someone else?"

"I mean, there were bathroom breaks. We obviously weren't holding hands for that. But yeah, for the most part, we maintained physical contact. Maybe it's the fact that Nashi's warmth was pretty soothing for me."

"Really?"

"Um… yeah. What's so weird about it?"

"There's nothing weird about it. However, I would like for everyone except you two to leave." She made a shooing gesture at the rest of the team aside from Nashi and Hisoka, prompting them to exit the hospital room. As they filed out, Porlyusica walked over to one of the beds and beckoned to Hisoka. "Sit." As Hisoka obeyed, she pulled out her internal scanning lacrima. "I should check on the progress of your recovery anyway, so this is the perfect time."

"Why is this the perfect time?"

"Hold on…" Porlyusica pulled up a LacrimaVision display, which showed what Hisoka assumed was his own ribcage, especially since it showed the holes from Merlin's bolts. "Your recovery is going splendidly. Now stay there. Nashi, sit over here." She patted on another bed.

"What's going on?" asked Nashi as she sat on the bed.

Porlyusica turned back to Hisoka and stepped aside so that he and Nashi could make eye contact with each other. "Hisoka, listen to Nashi's emotions. Is there anything unusual about them?"

Hisoka stared at Nashi. "Well… there's… actually, I'm not sure. She seems normal."

"If she were normal, she would be uncomfortable with my examinations, and I should know. I've given her quite a few over the years." She pulled out a stethoscope and placed it on Nashi's heart. "Nashi, look away from Hisoka."

"Uh…"

"Just do it."

Nashi looked Porlyusica in the eye, and Porlyusica nodded, looking concerned. Even Hisoka could hear her heart rate quickening. Hisoka instinctively leaned over and placed a hand on hers, and even though it was her right hand, he could immediately hear her heart rate going back down to normal.

"Well, it seems like it so far," Porlyusica noted as she watched this, still listening to Nashi's heartbeat. She then switched over to Hisoka.

"I can no longer hear her heartbeat," Hisoka said. "Of course, my touch does that."

"That's because it's synchronized with yours," Porlyusica explained. "Also, you've become very warm, probably from touching Nashi."

"Sorry." Nashi withdrew her hand. "We didn't mean to interrupt your examination."

"Well, all the signs I'm capable of looking for are there," Porlyusica decided, winding up the stethoscope and putting it away. "Those signs could mean multiple things, and I do not have the tools to search for any confirmation. However, all the evidence that I can see points to it, and I doubt it isn't the case due to what you told me."

"What?" asked Nashi.

"You both underwent prolonged exposure to something that should only be used in the moment." Porlyusica looked over at Hisoka. "Hisoka, your calming touch is meant for a few minutes or seconds of exposure, not days." She then turned to Nashi. "As for you, I don't know much about this warm touch of yours, except that it's meant for eggs, not people."

"Would you please tell us what's wrong?" asked Hisoka.

"Nothing is technically wrong, but you seem to have developed an emotional bond," Porlyusica explained. "Not like a close friendship; more like your emotions are magically bound together. After so long of using that magic, it had a permanent effect on both of you. As for what that permanent effect is, I am uncertain, other than the fact that you have emotionally become closer to one another. This is why Natsu never did what he did until you came along." She looked at Nashi with this last part. "He had never fully committed to his relationship with Lucy until then."

Nashi's expression immediately turned sour. "And yet, they decided working was more important than me." She stood up and walked along the hallway, blasting a hole in the wall and exiting the building.

"Use the door, dammit!" Porlyusica shouted. "Don't go destroying my property!" Suddenly, her eyes widened with shock, and she clutched her chest, dropping onto the bed across from Hisoka and breathing heavily.

"It happened again, didn't it?"

Porlyusica nodded. "I did start teaching Thomas. However, I don't believe I have long enough to teach him everything."

"Well, that's to be expected, isn't it? I mean, you've been learning for decades."

"That is true."

Hisoka stood up and placed his hands on Porlyusica's shoulders, activating his healing magic. "Well, I can't reverse age, but this should at least help."

"Thank you." Porlyusica stood back up.

Hisoka nodded as he removed his hands, then looked up the hallway at the newly-formed hole. "Maybe it's the emotional magic thing you were talking about, but I think I should go after her."

"It's your wisdom after feeling the effects of that magic," Porlyusica explained. "In other words, your instincts. Yes, you should go."

* * *

Natsu looked around, then spotted her leaning against the tree in Magnolia Park and jogged over. "Yo, Nashi!" he called. There was no response as he walked right up to her. "We had an idea about the egg. Your mother and I were thinking…"

Nashi whipped around and met Natsu with a flaming metal fist to the stomach, sending him tumbling back about twenty feet.

"Oof!" Natsu staggered to his feet. "What was that about?"

"Sorry," Nashi apologized. "I still haven't forgiven you, so I needed to get that out of my system. What were you saying?"

"You haven't?"

Nashi sighed. "Just because I ranted about your neglectfulness doesn't mean everything's good and happy. You still neglected me for pretty much my entire life, and that has consequences."

The two of them turned to the sound of footsteps to see Hisoka jogging over. "Nashi, you alright?"

"I'm fine, Hisoka." She turned back to her father. "What were you saying?"

"Well, we had an idea for where you could take the egg," Natsu explained. "Have you heard of the Sun Village?"

* * *

"You're kidding. You've never met another blue exceed?"

"Other than my mom, no," Happy replied. "Weird, isn't it?"

Thomas nodded and looked over at Henri. "Isn't that weird?"

"I've seen weirder," Henri replied. "I am not surprised."

"Apparently there's some kind of mythology behind it," Happy said. "Like, there's this single generational line of blue exceeds, and apparently one will occasionally have this hidden power."

"It's still just a myth, though," Henri pointed out. "You shouldn't count on it."

"I know," Happy replied. "But it's still fun reading about it."

Henri shrugged. "To each their own."

Thomas glanced up at the sky to see two familiar shapes gliding toward the balcony railing where they were perched. "Well, look who's back."

Charle and Lily came to a stop and dropped nimbly onto the railing. "We've got a problem," Charle announced. "Extalia needs Fairy Tail's help."

* * *

The humans of Team Dragon King sat around the table. Some of them had grabbed something to eat, while Akane looked around the guild hall. "Any idea where Henri and Thomas are?"

Hisoka shrugged. "Your guess is as good as mine. I'd really like them to be here, though."

They sat in awkward silence for a few more minutes. Then the two exceeds glided over to their table and plopped themselves down in the middle.

"There you are," Hisoka said.

"We were thinking we could deliver the egg to the Sun Village," Nashi announced, now that everybody was present.

Henri put up a paw to get Nashi to stop. "Delivering the egg will have to wait. We have a crisis in New Extalia that needs dealt with now. And funnily enough, it has to do with eggs."

"What?!" Hisoka asked incredulously.

"There are some powerful mages abducting our eggs," Thomas explained. "We don't have the power to fight them on our own."

Hisoka's eyes widened. "Uh…"

"Please," Henri pleaded. "The egg is safe right now."

Hisoka shook his head. "If we're doing that, we'll have to take the egg with us."

"Hisoka, no."

"Dragon eggs have been known to hatch up to a month prematurely," Hisoka argued. "And it'll immediately decide that the first few faces it sees are its family. Once that happens within the guild, we'll have no choice but to keep it in the guild, and I'm afraid we can't allow that. However, we can't just leave this crisis on its own. We'll take the egg along, and we'll ask Queen Chagot to protect it for us."

"Did you not hear me?" Henri inquired. "These people are abducting eggs."

"I'm well aware," Hisoka replied. "And I intend to see to it that they can't get to this one."

"I can help."

Everyone once again jumped as Elkhart stepped out of the shadows and sat down with them.

"I'm nonbinary today, so they/them pronouns today," Elkhart notified. "Anyway, you'll be protecting this egg from some powerful mages, and I'm S-class, so I suggest you let me accompany you on this mission."

"Thanks, Elk'," Merlin said.

"'Elk'?"

"Short for 'Elkhart'."

"It sounds like you're thanking a herd of actual elk."

"It's cute," Merlin retorted.

Elkhart blushed. Then they collected themself. "Anyway, mind if I help you guys?"

"We'd be happy to have you," Emma confirmed. The others nodded in agreement.

Hisoka stood up. "Well, let's all pack!" He strode over to the guild doors and was surprised to see Torden sitting outside. "Um… hello."

"I heard about the egg," Torden announced. "As a dragon myself, I believe I would be qualified to help in this matter."

"Oh, yeah." Hisoka nodded in realization. "I hadn't thought about that."

Torden grinned. "Well, since we seem to be agreed on this, mind if I give you people a lift?"

"Where's Emma?"

Nashi glanced around in response to Hisoka's question, then shrugged and climbed onto Torden's back. "I dunno. Probably visiting Eallesander or something."

"There's a good chance she's visiting Sabertooth," William confirmed. "She's been hanging out there more often since we got back from the war."

"But what makes you say Eallesander specifically?" Merlin asked as he handed the egg back to Nashi.

"Are you really that oblivious?" Nashi inquired. "It's clear those two have taken an interest in one another. Like when they fought in the Games, they were enjoying it too much. It was like watching myself fight Emma, except that they don't hate each other."

"Not all of us fight Emma as much as you do," Thomas pointed out. "It seems like that would be necessary to notice something like that."

"I noticed it, too," Akane chimed in.

Nashi grinned smugly at Thomas, who sighed and flew up onto Torden's back.

"Maybe we should look there, though," Merlin suggested. "Even I've noticed that Emma has been visiting Sabertooth pretty frequently lately."

"She's there." Elkhart held up a lacrima display.

Merlin blinked a few times, then stared blankly at Elkhart. "Well, that was easy."

"Yep, but now we have an idea of why." The red-haired mage leaped up onto Torden's back. "Well, now that we're all here, let's go pick up Emma."

Hisoka looked over at the back of Torden's head. "Torden…"

"I heard," Torden replied. He spread his wings and lifted off, then turned in the direction of Sabertooth.

* * *

"Still no sign?" Emma asked.

Jonah, Carli and Hiromi all shook their heads.

"Right…" Emma glanced awkwardly at Carli. "Shouldn't we go looking for them?"

"We don't know where to start," Hiromi explained. "Emma, I'm just as concerned as you are, if not more so. Ever since Sting and Rogue adopted Eallesander, they've been like a sister to me. And I kind of need that, because despite joining Sabertooth being my decision, I miss Nashi. We just can't figure out where to start."

"Then start somewhere!" Emma snapped. "Our friend is missing! The worst possible thing we can do is nothing. Just start somewhere." She turned her back to them, then glanced up to see Torden descending toward them. He landed on the ground in front of them, and everyone except William and Nashi dropped to the ground.

"Emma, we have to go," Hisoka requested.

"Yeah, I know. We have some lives at stake." Emma strode over to Torden, then briefly turned back to her Sabertooth friends. "Don't just sit around doing nothing. If you really care about Eallesander, then do everything that might possibly give you a lead." She climbed onto Torden's back, followed by the others. "Let's go."

Torden took off in the direction of Extalia.

"Still no sign of Eallesander?" William asked.

Emma shook her head. "They've been gone for half a month now. We're all really worried."

"We'll help find them as soon as we can," Hisoka reassured. "Right now, we need to take care of the lives that we know are currently in danger."

"I know." Emma leaned forward, her hands on her knees, trembling nervously. "I really hope we can find them."

"So do the rest of us." Hisoka placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder, both as a comforting gesture and to calm her emotions.

Emma stopped trembling and smiled. "Yeah. Thanks for that."

* * *

As the team jumped off of Torden's back, they were met with a line of large exceeds pointing rifles. They lowered them as they saw Henri and Thomas.

"Sorry," a calico female who appeared to be in charge apologized. "Just a precaution. I assume you are here to help?"

Hisoka nodded.

Nashi jumped down, then had the egg handed down to her by Elkhart. She turned to the exceeds. "In return, we'd like your help protecting this."

The calico sighed. "As of now, we're not doing a good job of protecting our own eggs, let alone someone else's." At this point, a crowd was gathering behind the guards.

"Let me see." A white exceed pushed through the crowd, and as she broke through the line of guards, her outfit made it clear to the team that this was Queen Chagot. She walked up to Nashi and looked at the egg. "We do have a hiding place for the eggs that haven't been stolen. We can fit one more."

"It has to be incubated at a slightly higher temperature," Nashi explained. "I've been using my magic."

"We can take care of that," Chagot reassured. "We need to get it there quickly. My future vision shows them arriving again in about an hour."

"And the hiding place?" the calico asked.

"I think it's safe," Chagot replied. "I'm not seeing a future where they find it. Come with me."

Nashi followed them, along with the rest of the team.

Chagot led them to the center of the town and into the castle. She opened a trapdoor, and they headed down some stairs into a large chamber containing shelves of eggs in magical incubators.

"How did you…?"

"We provided them, per request of Queen Chagot."

The team whipped around in surprise and saw Nero sitting in a wooden chair behind the stairs. "Nice to see you again, Fairy Tail. The Council sent me to help out with this."

"That was good of you, I guess," Hisoka affirmed.

"How's life on the Council so far?" asked Elkhart. "If I remember correctly, you've been a full member for a year now."

"Pretty good," Nero replied. "I heard you came out as genderfluid."

"Yeah," Elkhart confirmed. "With me, it's pretty consistent throughout any given day. I'm using they/them pronouns at the moment."

Nero nodded. "Good to know when addressing you. Anyway, it's good to have you protecting this place alongside me."

"Well, we're now also protecting a dragon egg," Hisoka informed.

"Are you now?" Nero inquired. "I'm interested to see how my conscience reacts to that."

"Uh…"

"What he means is that the dragon egg would affect the stakes an unknown amount," Elkhart explained. "…I think?"

"Something like that," Nero replied. "I'm pretty weird."

"Hey, me too!" Hisoka exclaimed enthusiastically.

Nero shrugged. "Aren't we all to varying degrees?"

"Fair enough," Hisoka acknowledged. "Nice to meet you again."

Nashi looked up at some of the empty incubators. "So, um… which one should it go in?"

"Give it to me." The calico general took the egg from Nashi and flew up to one of the incubators, putting the egg in and closing the door, then setting a dial. She drifted back down. "I suppose I should have introduced myself by now. The name's Glint."

"Oh yeah," Henri realized. "We forgot to tell you about her. She's the captain of the queen's royal guard."

"Hey." Hisoka gave a brief wave. He glanced at Chagot. "How long do we have?"

"About thirty minutes," Chagot replied. "They're a bit quicker than expected."

Hisoka looked up at the egg, then back at the stairs. "Let's go meet them. I'm going on ahead. You can chat for now and join me later." He headed up the stairs.

* * *

Three humans walked through the streets. One was a young man with long, light blue hair and light brown skin. There was also a young woman with long, straight sea-green hair and similar skin tone, as well as a light-skinned, white-haired woman with braided hair and lighter skin.

"Stop!"

The three of them turned to see various pale-skinned folk striding over to them, as well as a few of the cats from the town.

Hisoka stopped and stared at the faces in shock. "You…"

The blue-haired man's eyes widened briefly. Then he smiled. "Long time no see, Hisoka."

* * *

 **Well, these last two chapters were rather short, and this one's a bit of a cliffhanger, which is not the best of combinations. Sorry about that. Nevertheless, hope you enjoyed!**


	46. Dragon Egg Arc - Family and Foes

Hisoka stared at the three egg-nappers, his face one of shock and anger.

Merlin looked at their opponents, then back at Hisoka. "Wait… do you guys know each other?"

"Your friend Hisoka visited our tribe a few times back when he lived on our continent," the man explained. "And I must say, back then he was just as awkward as this reunion is right now."

Hisoka glanced at the green-haired woman, taking note of the lack of braids. "Shizuka, I see you got married."

"A lot has changed," the blue-haired man explained. "One of those changes was me and Shizuka becoming closer."

"Hisoka, who are these people?" Elkhart asked.

"You never told them about us?" the man inquired, jokingly throwing up a dramatic hand. "Why, I am _offended_."

"I didn't feel like it," Hisoka replied. "Guys, this is Hideki from the Quapa tribe, as well as his tribemates, Shizuka and Aqissiaq. Aqissiaq is Soren's sister." He didn't break eye contact with Hideki, maintaining the same anger on his face. "Now, would you guys care to explain what you three are doing here?"

"Well, you see, somebody snuck off with a dragon egg that we needed for something. We chased him all the way to this continent, and found out that it was Takuma. Remember him?"

Hisoka rolled his eyes. "Of course I know my own foster father. So I take it you're here for the egg?"

"Indeed."

"Well, we ain't gonna let you have it!" Nashi charged at Hideki.

"Nashi, no! He's…" Hisoka began.

"Karyuu no Tekken!" She swung a flaming fist at Hideki, but it passed right through as part of his body dissolved into flame, throwing Nashi off balance and sending her tumbling to the ground behind him.

"…a hellfire dragonslayer."

"Don't even bother," Hideki sneered at Nashi as she glared up at him, breathing heavily. "Each one of us is more powerful than the six…" he glanced at William. "…five-and-a-half of you combined."

William's eyes narrowed in anger. "I beg your fucking pardon?!"

"I'm pretty observant," Hideki explained. "And I can see you're in no shape to fight. Counting you as half a person was a generous estimate."

Nashi slammed a foot into Hideki from behind, this time connecting. "Don't you dare underestimate a single member of Team Dragon King!"

Hideki grunted as a bit of breath was knocked from his lungs. "Lucky shot. I wasn't paying attention."

"Well, excuse _me_ , Mister Observant," Nashi retorted.

With this, Hideki grabbed Nashi by the face and engulfed her in bright blue flames. "You're annoying." He threw her against a nearby tree behind him, where she crumpled into a heap.

"Rika!" Hisoka ran toward Hideki.

"So you want to fight me now?"

Hisoka jumped up and sprouted his wings, flying overtop of Hideki and landing next to a badly injured Nashi.

"I feel weird…" Nashi groaned.

"No kidding." Hisoka began using his healing magic. "He shoved fire down your throat with no room for oxygen. You may be able to eat fire, but you can't breathe it. Oh, and the score's four to three, my favor."

"So you learned a few tricks over the years?" Hideki inquired. "Good for you. This one's called 'Rika', I presume?"

"Her name's Nashi!" Hisoka snapped as he finished healing her. He stood up. "Only I get to call her Rika."

Hideki chuckled. "How cute."

Nashi stood up and charged at Hideki once more. "I'm a lot of things. Cute ain't one of 'em." She swung a fist and, once again, passed straight through.

"I dunno. It's a little cute that you're still trying to beat me. And Hisoka seems to think you're cute."

"What?!" Hisoka snapped incredulously.

"I got a read on you when you went to save this girl, and she seems to be someone you fancy. Not to mention that endearing nickname."

Hisoka's eyes narrowed in exasperation. "That's not actually it." He took a deep breath, as if trying to calm down, then whipped around to Aqissiaq and shot his breath weapon at her, catching her off guard as she was sent sprawling. He dashed over before the other two could react and lifted her off of the ground, then caused watery tendrils to wrap around the girl, restraining her. "And it's like Nashi said: you can't have the egg." He placed a hand on Aqissiaq's throat, threatening to choke her. "Now I suggest you get the hell out of here."

"You're bluffing," Hideki confidently declared. "You wouldn't hurt her."

"Not on purpose, no," Hisoka agreed. "However, I've restrained one of our opponents, and in this position, I could easily injure her by accident if you attack me."

Hideki glared at Hisoka, then darted over and grabbed William, pinning her arms behind her back and yanking her away from the group. "I, on the other hand, would gladly kill one of your guild friends if you do not let Aqissiaq go this instant."

"Sis!" Emma took a step toward William, her face a mixture of shock and anger. Nashi stopped in her repeated attempts to land a hit on Hideki.

"You harm a hair on Will's body…" Akane extended an arm toward Aqissiaq, his hand giving off a dull red glow. "…and I _will_ run your friend through. And you know how hard it is to recover from my magic."

William's eyes widened with absolute terror as she realized the situation she was in, while Aqissiaq seemed to remain perfectly calm.

Hideki glanced over at Akane, the back to Aqissiaq. Then he sighed. "I suppose this is a little tricky, isn't it? We'd all best play our cards _very_ carefully. Maybe we can diffuse this situation once you tell us where the egg is."

Merlin watched his twin sister as he stood frozen in here. _Please, not again… why does she keep nearly dying? What if she actually does die this time? We should stop taking her on missions. I can't live without…_

Merlin's thoughts were cut off as Hideki's eyes suddenly went wide, while William's eyes closed tightly. Hideki released his grip on William and stumbled back, creating a snapping sound, and the others could see a barbed metal spike about four feet long jutting out of his backside. William separated her hands with another snapping sound, and everyone saw that her hands were covered in titanium scales. She whipped around to face her assailant as the scales spread across her entire body.

Hideki tried to speak, but just coughed up blood, spattering William in the face. Shizuka watched with shock.

"I'm not just some helpless cripple whom you can threaten as a bargaining chip," William asserted. "I'm a Fairy Tail wizard, and underestimating me will not end well for you!" She stood her ground, not even bothering to wipe her face off.

"Chitanryuukon!" Merlin extended a titanium pole toward Hideki, punching the base of William's spike and pushing it out the other side. Immediately, blood started gushing from the wound, and Hideki fell to the ground.

"Hideki-kun!" Shizuka dove to her husband's side and placed her hands on the wound, which then began to glow with healing magic.

"He'll live," William unempathetically stated. "Believe me, I've suffered worse."

"Lucky…" Hideki sat up, groaning. "…didn't see… attack."

"Oh, I was lucky, was I?" William inquired.

Hideki stood up and swung a blazing fist at William, landing the attack, but his eyes widened. He then jumped back and clutched his bloody fist.

"Your weakness," William declared, "is that you have to solidify to land an attack. And I can spike up the instant your fist connects, on the spot where it hits."

Hideki once again thrust a fist toward William, and she once again spiked up. This time, however, Hideki's hand dissolved into flame, wrapping around William's torso and suddenly turning white-hot. William screamed in pain and jumped back with Emma, dropping her scales. Much of her shirt had burnt away, showing severe burns covering her stomach and her lower back. She briefly dropped to her hands and knees, then brought her scales back up and pulled out a light pen, drawing two characters in the air.

振動

A low rumble filled the air – too low to hear, but loud enough that everyone could feel it resonating throughout their bodies. Hideki's form briefly burst apart, then reformed.

"Better stay solid if you don't want to be ripped apart," William suggested. Hisoka could hear from the tone of her voice and her brainwaves that she was in a lot of pain from the burns, and was surprised that she was still conscious.

Akane lowered his arm, then lunged at Hideki. "Shinkuryuu no Houkou!" A cone of crimson energy burst from his mouth. The energy dissipated from the vibrations after going so far, but still managed to engulf Hideki entirely.

As the energy cleared, Hideki continued to stand, covered from head to toe in cuts. He grinned. "Hey, I can do that, too. Goukaryuu no Houkou!" A cone of white-hot flame burst from his mouth, engulfing the entire group. The flames then cleared, revealing a water dome over everyone, with Hisoka at the center. The vibrations had stopped, with William on her hands and knees, breathing heavily.

"Enough," Hisoka asserted. "Leave with no intention of coming back, and I will release Aqissiaq. Otherwise, she can join her brother."

"You met Soren?"

"The Magic Council took care of him," Hisoka replied. "Now I suggest you leave. And I can hear your basic thought processes, so I can tell if you're lying. Tell me, will you leave and not return to this city?"

"Don't!" Aqissiaq protested. "This is too important."

Hideki stared coldly at Hisoka, then glanced at Aqissiaq. He sighed. "Yes."

Hisoka maintained his grip on Aqissiaq. "You're lying."

Hideki shrugged. "Well, at least you don't plan on hurting her." He turned and walked away, followed by Shizuka.

Hisoka waited until they had left, then knocked Aqissiaq out and dropped her to the ground. He turned to the others. "You guys should restrain her. She'll come to in a few minutes. Thomas and I will take care of William." He knelt in front of William. "Sorry for the wait. Shit…" Most of her skin that was visible had taken some damage, while there was a thick ring of third-degree burns around her torso. "Okay, I'm surprised you're still conscious. Even minor burns are ridiculously painful."

"Not… easy…" William managed, before crying out as Hisoka touched the skin.

"I also wouldn't recommend vibrations like that, given the current state of your skeleton. Can you stand?"

"I feel dizzy…"

"That's the shock from the burns. Do you think you could stand up?"

"Sort of…" William placed a hand on Hisoka's shoulder. "Help me." Hisoka stood up, while William pulled herself up with him, then continued to steady herself on him.

"Let's get you to some kind of shelter," Hisoka suggested. "Some of the burns are underneath your clothes, so I'll have to remove them. I'm assuming you'll want privacy from the others."

William grunted, both too lightheaded and too in pain to give a verbal response. Hisoka continued to guide her over to a clearing just as Elkhart came out of the castle.

"I heard some commotion." Their eyes widened as they saw William. "What happened?"

"She's been badly burned," Hisoka explained. "Can you make an earth tent? And then set up a few bedrolls? She's going to need some privacy for what I'm about to do."

"Uh… what are you about to do?"

"I need to touch the burns in order to heal it."

"I see." Elkhart stomped their foot and brought their hands up, causing earthen walls to shoot out of the ground in a round tent shape. They then pulled some bedrolls from their requip inventory and spread them out on the tent floor. "There you go." They stepped out of the tent. "All yours."

Hisoka guided William into the tent, then sat down with her, while Thomas hovered next to him. "Okay, William. Your clothes would have partially adhered to the burnt skin, so there's no way I can stop this from hurting."

"Mm."

Hisoka tore off the remains of William's shirt, causing another gasp of pain. As he removed the rest of William's clothes, exposing the full extent of her injury, her eyes shut completely and she began to fall over, but was caught by Hisoka, who then began to use his healing magic, with the assistance of Thomas. "I kind of feel bad. I feel like I'm violating her."

"You're not," Thomas reassured. "When your job is to tend to the sick and injured, sometimes you have no choice but to see more of your patient than they would normally be willing to show you."

"It still feels wrong, though," Hisoka complained.

"You're saving her from more permanent injuries," Thomas pointed out. "She may have been resilient enough to stay conscious for as long as she did, but these burns were severe nonetheless. Don't ever feel bad for saving someone. Trust me. Porlyusica and I have had to strip our patients many times, including you."

Hisoka nodded, then noticed that his magic was fizzling out. "I guess I used a lot of power restraining Aqissiaq." He activated Second Origin and continued until most of the burns were gone, while his magic seemed to strip away the skin from the third-degree area. The skin partially began to grow back, but the raw flesh remained exposed. "Well, I guess I can't restore dead cells."

"You made a full recovery possible," Thomas asserted. "That's good. She should be on her feet after a good night's sleep. Also, Henri's been teaching me a bit of requip magic…" Some bandages and other supplies materialized in his grip. "Let's go ahead and dress and bandage it."

Hisoka nodded and assisted Thomas, with a little instruction on how to apply the dressing.

"There. I think that's good." The two healers laid William down properly, then put a blanket over her.

* * *

Emma, Merlin and Akane leaped to their feet as Hisoka strode out of the tent.

"How is she?" Emma asked, her voice full of worry.

"She's fine," Hisoka reassured. "She passed out a few minutes ago, and is getting some rest." He looked at the now-conscious Aqissiaq tied to a tree and noted the magic-sealing handcuffs. "Where'd you get those?"

"Nero provided them," Elkhart replied.

Hisoka nodded and turned to Aqissiaq. "You know, there are a lot of things I'd like to ask you. For one thing, who the hell is Unugoladu?" He winced in pain and clutched his forehead with one hand. "Flutlogia isn't telling me, and I'd really like to know."

Aqissiaq sighed. "Well, I suppose there's no harm in telling you. He's our new leader."

"Gaaaah!" Hisoka curled up on the ground, gripping both sides of his head in agony.

"Hisoka!" Nashi exclaimed, running over along with the others. "Are you alright?"

"I'm… fine…" Hisoka got up, revealing patches of scales on his face and hands. "Now, do you happen to know why Flutlogia hates this guy so much?" He continued to grimace from the pain.

Aqissiaq did what could pass as shrugging when one is tied up. "I dunno, probably the same reason Unugoladu hates _him_ so much."

"Which is?"

"Well, I don't know the details, but I will say that Flutlogia isn't the great leader you think he is. He did some awful things, and he made some enemies in the process. Isn't that right, Flutlogia? Even now, you have the indecency to hurt the bearer of your soul over something you did."

The pain in Hisoka's head subsided, and he started wheezing. He subconsciously placed a hand over where his left lung was.

"Are you alright?" Akane asked, his voice filling with guilt.

"I'm fine. I just need some rest. In fact, I think we all do."

"I'll go find where Torden landed," Akane said. "I think it would be nice if he could keep a lookout." He spread his wings and shot up above the treeline.

* * *

William woke with a start as she heard a loud thud. She sat up and glanced over to see Thomas sleeping nearby. She noticed some folded-up clothes and quickly pulled them on, then peeked out through the tent door.

Sneaking into the city were the three from earlier. William could smell some distant catnip, but was more focused on the fact that one, Aqissiaq was out of her restraints, and two, they were headed directly toward the castle. She ran across the clearing to where her friends' tents were set up, entering one of them to find Merlin and Elkhart snuggled up against each other.

"Wake up!"

William's loud command instantly jolted the two of them awake, at which point Merlin instantly saw William and turned red. Elkhart, on the other hand, remained entirely calm.

"W-Will! Uh… you weren't supposed to see this…" Merlin stammered.

William sighed. "You don't need to be embarrassed to be seen cuddling. We all know you two are a thing."

"What is it?" asked Elkhart.

"I think Torden just fell to the ground. Also, we've lost our prisoner. She and her friends are about to find the egg."

"Shit!" Elkhart jumped to their feet and immediately requipped into their day clothes, while Merlin hurried into his clothes, not even bothering to change out of his pajamas and just putting his normal clothes on over top of them. They headed to the other three tents and woke the others.

"Come on!" Merlin whispered as he shook Emma awake. "The egg-nappers are back." He went over to Nashi's tent.

"What?!" Nashi didn't even bother to change, jumping to her feet and charging out of the tent. They joined the others and stopped abruptly in response to what they saw.

Hisoka watched with horror as his former tribemates stepped out of the city, holding the egg.

"Well, what did you expect?" Hideki asked rhetorically. "This is what we were here for, after all."

Hisoka's expression dropped to that of defeat. "Is there anyone left whom I can trust? Back at home?"

"A few," Shizuka agreed. "There was Takuma, though we can't tell if he's still alive." She jerked a thumb at the egg Hideki was holding. "And there's your sister. But nobody who opposes us will last long." She grinned at Hisoka. "And we would really love the reward that would be received from killing you, but our primary mission is getting this egg back to Unugoladu. Not to mention we already sent someone to kill you, though from what you told us, he's out of the picture."

"Still, we have another task at hand. But thanks for notifying us." Hideki turned and began to walk away.

"Oh, no you don't!" Nashi started running for them, her right arm lighting up and the dragon symbol on her left arm glowing.

However, Hisoka beat her to it, leaping in front of Nashi, spinning around and delivering a water-assisted foot to her stomach, which threw her into the air and sent her tumbling to a stop about thirty feet away.

Everyone in the team, as well as the scattering of exceeds in the area, stared at Hisoka in shock.

"Don't endanger the egg!" Hisoka shouted. Suddenly, he stopped and stared at Nashi as he realized what he had just done.

"Listen to your friend," Hideki advised. "He knows you can't defeat us, and that your attacks could hurt the egg." The three of them continued to walk off into the woods.

Hisoka walked over to Nashi, who was still trying to stand up. "Nashi, I'm…" He saw Nashi's face and trailed off. "…sorry…"

A trickle of blood ran down from one corner of Nashi's mouth, and her expression was that of surprise mixed with physical pain. She doubled over and coughed, not spitting out a whole lot of blood; she had probably bitten her tongue in the tumble.

Hisoka's eyes widened. He turned and retreated into his tent.

"Hisoka wai…!" Nashi trailed off into a groan as intense pain shot through her stomach. She had really been unprepared for that attack. She tried to stand up, ultimately needing assistance from Akane.

"Let me help…" Thomas flew over and placed his paws on Nashi's stomach. There was a momentary dull white glow, and the pain subsided somewhat, to the point where Nashi's breath was no longer shallow. "That should feel a little better."

"Thanks, Thomas…" Nashi broke away from Akane. "I need… to talk… to Hisoka." She clutched her stomach and dropped to her knees.

"What you need is some time to rest up," Henri argued. "I've seen Hisoka like this before, and the best thing to do for the moment is leave him be for just a bit."

"But it wasn't his fault! I wasn't thinking, and he had barely any time to react…" Nashi broke into another fit of coughing.

"I'm glad you can forgive him so easily. However, he can't forgive himself so easily. The way he feels right now, strangely enough, is fairly similar to grief. He did something he wasn't okay with, and talking to him will have to wait until he's calmed down."

Nashi grunted, indicating a mixture of pain and frustration.

"Besides, you appear to have been hit pretty hard in a fairly soft area," Thomas added. "You should rest for a bit."

Nashi stood up and stormed over to her tent, grumbling under her breath, followed by a grunt of pain as she entered and sat down. She took as deep of a breath as she could without hurting herself and let it out slowly, then stared at the ground in sadness. "I can't believe we failed our first mission as a team," she said to herself. "And Hisoka probably thinks I'm mad at him, and won't speak to me because of it. Can't I just succeed at keeping a team together like dad did?" She laid down and stared at the walls of her tent, not crying, but nevertheless upset and frustrated.

* * *

 **Sorry for releasing this chapter so late in the evening. I completely forgot what day it was. Hope you enjoyed!**


	47. Dragon Egg Arc - Boats and Catnip

"Go away!" Hisoka ordered as he heard footsteps approaching his tent.

"I'm afraid we need to talk," Akane asserted. "I saw the look on your face, and it wasn't pretty."

"You bet it wasn't," Hisoka retorted. "How do you think Nashi feels? I _attacked_ her, Akane!"

"You're saying that to the guy you forgave literally minutes after he almost fatally stabbed you. I think you're being a little unfair on yourself. You were protecting the egg, and you didn't have time to process everything."

"When something like this happens to me, it's me they're hurting, so I decide whether it's okay. But when I hurt a friend, it's not me who gets to decide that it's okay. It's them. And I don't think Nashi would react too well to that."

"Why?" Akane asked. "Why would her reaction be so different from yours?"

Hisoka sighed. "Time and time again, I've been shown that my brain isn't wired the same way as the people around me. I'm not normal, even…"

"Even if it's a little different, you are still just like everyone else where it really matters!" Akane burst out, cutting Hisoka off. "You have the capacity to love, to forgive. And being close to someone makes them easier to forgive. That said, you and Nashi are quite close. I think you're a little more worried about this than you should be."

Hisoka opened his mouth to speak, then closed it again.

"I think it'll take more than a single kick to the stomach to destroy your friendship," Akane continued. "That said, I still think the least you can do is apologize."

"That's obvious," Hisoka agreed. "But not now. Can I just have some space?"

"Yeah." Akane stood up and turned to exit the tent. "By the way, do you smell catnip?"

* * *

Elkhart stared at Torden, their eye twitching.

"Broken wings feel weird," Torden said dreamily as he lay flat on his back, staring hazily at the stars.

Elkhart walked over and noticed a bundle of spiky-leaved stalks, small enough to carry easily in one hand. "Catnip?" They turned and looked over at Merlin. "Any ideas?" They then noticed that Merlin was just staring absentmindedly at the stars and walked over, snapping a finger in his face. "Oi! Merlin! Snap out of it."

Merlin jumped, startled. "Sorry. I'm not sure…" He trailed off.

"Merlin! You okay?" Elkhart snapped their fingers again.

Merlin blinked a few times, then looked Elkhart in the eye. "Akane… er… Elkhart… do you smell catnip?"

Elkhart rolled their eyes. "I'm holding it, genius. What's gotten into you?"

"Pain is a funny thing," Torden muttered. "The stars are pretty…"

"Right! Of course," Merlin realized. "Sorry, I'm feeling a little… oh, by the way, do you smell catnip?"

Elkhart palmed their forehead. "Okay, as much fun as I'm having learning how dragons and dragonslayers react to catnip, this is kind of ridiculous."

"We're all ridiculous…"

"Merlin!"

"Sorry. I guess I just can't focus."

"I can see that." Elkhart held up the catnip and incinerated it. Then they created a gigantic gust of wind to take care of the smell. "Is that better?"

"A bit… still can't really pay attention to things, though…"

"Yeah, it'll take a minute to get out of your system." They led Merlin back to the campsite just as Akane was stepping out of a tent.

* * *

"What's the deal with Torden?" Akane inquired.

"Catnip," Elkhart replied. "I didn't know it affected dragons."

"And dragonslayers, apparently," Merlin added. "I couldn't pay attention to _anything_."

"It's fairly different from its effect on cats, it seems," Elkhart noted. "For the effect you were getting, a cat would have to ingest it."

"I know," Akane replied. "It's used in soul fusion ceremonies. You see, the process is extremely painful, and catnip renders a dragon or dragonslayer incredibly inattentive to pain."

"Interesting…" Elkhart noted, nodding. "The more you know." Suddenly, they remembered something. "Oh, I think Torden broke a wing or two when he fell."

Akane's eyes widened, and he made his way toward his and Hisoka's tent, when Hisoka suddenly stepped out.

"I heard that." Hisoka trudged past them and headed for Torden. "Let's make a splint." Just then, they heard a roar of pain from Torden as the catnip wore off.

* * *

Hisoka opened his eyes, blinking a few times in response to the morning sun peeking through the tent flap. He stretched, then got dressed. "I guess I'm ready," he muttered to himself as he stepped out of the tent. He then walked over to Nashi's tent. "Nashi?"

No response. Come to think of it, he couldn't even detect her brainwaves. He pulled open the tent flaps. "Dammit." The tent was completely empty. He glanced over at where, Emma, Merlin, Elkhart, Henri and Thomas were sitting around the embers of a campfire. "Any idea where Nashi went?"

Emma shrugged. "Hell if I know. We gonna come up with a plan?"

"Plan?"

"To rescue the egg," Merlin reminded.

"There's no rescuing the egg!" Hisoka snapped. "Those are three extremely powerful dragonslayers. I'm sorry, but we've failed the mission."

"Don't you dare say that." Merlin stood up and strode over to Hisoka. "We are Fairy Tail." He pointed a finger in Hisoka's face. "Don't give up. You're the one who told me that, remember?"

"This is different…"

"Why? Because you're the one giving up?"

Hisoka looked away.

"Well, you practice like you preach," Merlin continued. "We're going to figure this out, and we're going to do it together."

Hisoka sighed. "Well, first we should try to find Nashi. She is a part of the team, after all."

"Yeah. I suppose so. In fact, I'll go get Will." Merlin headed over to the earth tent and peeked inside. "Shit…" He jogged back over. "Will's gone."

Hisoka's heart sank. "They went after them, didn't they?"

"No…" Merlin began pacing back and forth. "She wouldn't have. She's still recovering from those burns. Not to mention that thunder she created put stress on her larger bones. Would she?"

"It's hard to say," Elkhart admitted. "Nashi's also gone, after all. Maybe William went to help with tactics, or to track them. She does have the best nose out of all of us."

"But she wouldn't be so reckless! Would she?" He turned to Emma for help.

Emma shrugged. "I'm afraid I don't have answers either. Besides, you know her better than I do."

"Wait…" Merlin stared off into space for moment. Then his eyes widened. "Our bond… she's headed for Hargeon Port."

"And she's with Nashi," Elkhart added, showing them the LacrimaVision.

"Shit," Hisoka cussed. "They are going after them, aren't they? Also, I keep forgetting you have that."

"To be honest, I forgot there for a second. Oh, and I'm a guy today. Just thought I'd mention that." He put the LacrimaVision away. "I'll fly ahead. I can fend for myself long enough for you guys to catch up." He activated his meteor spell and shot into the air.

"Right…" Hisoka looked to the others. "Akane, you carry Emma. Merlin, I'll carry you. Henri, Thomas, don't bother taking down the camp. Just come on."

* * *

"And now for absolute torture."

"Oh, don't be like that," Shizuka insisted. "We have Aqissiaq's Troia spell."

"Whatever," Hideki retorted. "I think it's a little unfair that I'm the only one who gets sick on that boat."

"I'm a sea dragonslayer," Shizuka reminded. "And Aqissiaq is pretty well-attuned to her healing magic."

"I still feel like a partial Troia is a terrible idea," Hideki argued. "Sure, I may be able to eat and remain solid, but I'm still left defenseless."

"I need to keep enough magic to maintain the spell throughout the trip," Aqissiaq explained, stepping onto the boat. Then she looked inland. "I'd really like to rescue Soren as well."

"We need to get the egg home first," Hideki asserted.

Aqissiaq stared down at the floor of the boat, her expression turning to one of sadness.

Hideki placed a hand on her shoulder, while carefully holding the egg in his other arm. "We'll come back for Soren. I promise."

Aqissiaq looked up at Hideki, who smiled warmly. She smiled back, then reached over and cast the spell on Hideki. "We'd better. I'm going to hold you to that."

"You don't have to defend yourself," Shizuka added to the last subject. "You know how I am on the sea."

Hideki gave a huff of laughter, then leaned over and gave Shizuka a quick peck on the lips. "That sort of protectiveness is what I like about you." He stepped onto the boat, followed by Shizuka. "I'm going to take this to the incubator." He headed belowdecks, then came back up a few minutes later without the egg and with a slight stumble. "And the motion sickness is starting to kick in."

"It shouldn't get any worse, though," Aqissiaq reminded.

"Yeah, thanks for that." Hideki walked over to the other end of the boat where there was a dashboard and entered in some coordinates, at which point the boat pulled out of the dock and turned westward, heading for their homeland. "And you're right, Shizuka. Even if they are stupid enough to come after us, being in the ocean gives you alone plenty of power to deal with them."

"Speaking of…" Shizuka pointed up at the sky.

Hideki looked up and sighed as a bird appearing to be made of lightning streaked toward them, with two humanoid figures riding on its back. Hideki and Aqissiaq jumped back as the bird passed overhead and Nashi jumped off, slamming into the deck. Nashi looked up, a fire in her eyes…

…then immediately dropped to all fours, looking like she was ready to puke.

The bird stopped and hovered overhead. "You alright, Nashi?" William called.

"What did you expect to accomplish?" Shizuka inquired. "I have the power of the sea, and Aqissiaq here has Troia."

"Gate of the tiger…" Nashi groaned. "…maintain my balance… Hǔ!" She took a few deep breaths, then stood up, still sweating from the effort.

"I see…" Shizuka took note of the glowing symbol on her left arm. "You have the power of the Eastern Zodiac."

Nashi grinned. "You did your homework." She looked up at the wave rising behind Shizuka. "So you're like Hisoka."

"Not quite…" Part of the wave spiraled into a tip and shot toward Nashi, who blocked it with her arm. "Nice arm you got there. Where did you get it?"

"Oh, you know, a friend made it for me. Karyuu no Tekken!" Nashi rushed at Shizuka with a flaming fist, but was doused by surprisingly cold water as Shizuka grabbed her arm, then created a burst of pressurized water from within the arm. Nashi jumped back and realized that she could no longer bend her right elbow.

"You're lucky that wasn't an organic part of your body. Umiryuu no Hasou!" This time, the waves formed a watery set of talons that swiped at Nashi, who jumped back, but still got three large gashes across her stomach. Shizuka then took another swipe at William, who ducked out of the way with the help of Aquila.

"Nice move," Nashi panted as blood trickled down and soaked the top of her pants. "How are you doing up there, Will?"

"I'm going to fly back to shore," William replied. "Aquila's draining your power, and I was only here to help you track them."

"Got it!" Nashi turned back to Shizuka, then leaped up and turned the watery talon to steam with a white-hot flame as it took another swipe at Aquila. "You're going to tell me where the egg is."

"Why do you think it's going to be that easy?" Shizuka lunged at Nashi, who dodged out of the way and managed to smack her on the head with her partially-immobilized metal arm.

"I'd like to know why I was so lucky before I risk letting you touch me."

"That was the point." Shizuka stood up, rubbing her head and prompting Nashi to jump back before any blows could be landed.

"But I'm fully willing to take this ship down!"

Shizuka's eyes widened in surprise, and she tried whipping a tendril of water at Nashi. "And risk the egg?!"

"Your friend there isn't holding it!" Nashi pointed out. "Which means you already have it protected. Karyuu no Tekken!" She brought down a flaming fist, blowing a hole in the deck and dropping down below before Shizuka could react. She scanned the room and smiled as she spotted the egg in an incubator. "Good. It's watertight." She raised her fist again. "Karyuu no…"

Suddenly, something slammed into her from above. "Oh, no you don't!" Shizuka grabbed the back of Nashi's neck before she could react. "Umiryuu no Shikei!"

Nashi's eyes went wide with pain as she felt her insides burst, and her mouth filled with the taste of blood. Her ears popped, and there was a brief spurt of blood from her wounds as her vision blurred and she collapsed to the floor.

"That's why you were so lucky. Feel free to bleed out there. We don't want to attract sharks by letting you do it in the water." Shizuka headed back onto the main deck and glanced over at the others. "How are we doing?"

"There's another one." Hideki pointed up at the sky.

Shizuka looked up and saw a streak of light shooting toward them. It reached the size of a small human as it struck the deck of the boat, then cleared to reveal the red-haired boy from before with the maroon guildmark on his face.

Elkhart looked around. "Where's Nashi?"

"Dealt with," Shizuka replied. "You should really give up."

Elkhart's eyes narrowed. "Shall I repeat the question?"

"Most likely dead already," Shizuka replied. "Though she might have nearly a minute left if she's resilient enough."

"Where is she?!" Elkhart rushed toward Shizuka, blueshifting as he went. He then dealt a relativistic kick, which would have sent her overboard if Elkhart hadn't then switched to his meteor and knocked her back down to the deck. "You will tell me!" He scanned the deck to see Aqissiaq and Hideki just watching the fight. Then he saw a hole with charred edges, and he ran over and looked down, his eyes widening at what he saw.

"Like… I said…" Shizuka groaned as she lifted her head. "…dead… or dying…"

Elkhart turned angrily to Shizuka and launched a blast of air that threw her overboard. He then jumped into the pool, hearing a splash as he landed in a pool of blood. He saw that the horse symbol on her arm was glowing, desperately trying to keep her alive, but he could sense her magic fading quickly. "Dammit, what do I do?" His heart raced, and tears of frustration welled up. "I can't let one of my friends die!"

* * *

Hisoka stopped suddenly, his eyes widening with pain that he could already tell wasn't his own. "Nashi…"

Akane and the exceeds stopped in response. "What?"

Hisoka looked over at Henri. "Can you carry Merlin for me?"

"What happened?" Merlin asked.

"Is something wrong?" asked Henri.

"No time to explain. I need to get to Nashi now!" Hisoka shoved Merlin into Henri's grip and turned in the direction they had been flying. "Second Origin… Fifth Origin… Max Speed…" His wings began to glow, and he shot off with two loud bangs.

* * *

Elkhart turned Nashi over, revealing a couple of severe gashes. "That should slow the bleeding." He removed his cloak and began tearing strips off of it. Then he tied them over the gashes. "That's as much as I can do. I just have to hope Hisoka gets here in time." He jumped up onto the deck to see Shizuka being lowered back onto the deck by a watery hand.

"You see? It's hopeless."

"You're going to pay for what you did to my friend," Elkhart threatened. "The others are on their way."

Just then, there were two cracks of thunder, and a familiar blue shape slowed to a hover above the deck.

"She's in the hole!" Elkhart shouted. "Hurry!"

Hisoka looked down through the hole, and his eyes widened with shock. He hovered just above the floor, careful not to touch down, and immediately activated his healing magic, pressing one hand against Nashi's stomach and placing the other gently on her neck. The wounds closed and Hisoka could sense that her internal organs had been repaired. He examined the puddle of blood, and his heart sank. "A liter and a half lost… type O positive… Elkhart!"

"I'm a bit busy!" Hisoka could hear thuds as he fought with Shizuka.

"This is important! What's your blood type?"

"My what?!"

"Your blood type! Nashi's lost too much blood, and I'm A positive, so mine won't work!"

"Why would I know something like that?"

"Just get down here! I'll be able to sense it if I touch you."

"Believe me, I would love to! But I'm kind of busy at the moment!" There was a thud as Elkhart was knocked to the deck floor.

 _Hisoka!_

Hisoka jumped at the sound of Nashi's voice in his head and looked down to see the sheep and horse symbols on her arm glowing. _You can do that when you're unconscious?_

 _I was slightly conscious. Anyway, you've done all you can. Now go up there and fight!_

 _What about you? I can't just let you die!_

 _There's nothing you can do right now! Besides, my body's inactive, which should help me hold out for a few minutes. Maybe some help will arrive then. Just go!_

 _Right. Anyway, I'm sorry for attacking you._

 _We can talk about that later. Just go!_

 _Don't you dare die on me!_ Hisoka grabbed Nashi's keys and flew up through the hole to see Elkhart breathing heavily, covered in a few cuts and bruises, while Shizuka appeared to be in pain from a stomach injury.

"Nice of you to join us!" Shizuka greeted. "Though you look a bit banged up."

Elkhart glanced over at Hisoka and could see that some bruises were forming, and there was blood trickling from his ears and nose. "What happened to you?"

"I broke the sound barrier on the way here," Hisoka replied. "My hearing's temporarily damaged, but I'll be fine." He extended his arms toward Shizuka in a familiar pose. "Ensenryuu no Juatsukiri!"

Shizuka watched with surprise as a drill of water shot toward her with flames spiraling around it, combining into a burst of steam as they struck her. This time, she tumbled across the deck and began coughing up blood. "Interesting…" She stood up and wiped the blood from her mouth. "That took me a bit by surprise." She waved a hand, causing the steam to disperse. "Umiryuu no Houkou!" She unleashed her breath weapon, catching both Hisoka and Elkhart and sending them nearly tumbling over the edge. "Sure, you caught me off guard with a few new things, but the open water is my domain." She brought up both her hands, causing a gigantic wave to rise up which swooped down, missing most of the deck, and threw Hisoka and Elkhart out into the ocean before they could do anything.

"Nashi!" Hisoka spluttered.

 _I'm still alive,_ Nashi reassured. _Not sure for how long, though._

 _Well, I'm going back for you!_ Hisoka burst out of the water and flew over to the boat, followed by Elkhart, then dropped into the hole and grabbed Nashi's body.

Suddenly, the air began to grow cold. Hisoka carried Nashi up through the hole, and his eyes widened at what he saw.

Elkhart, Shizuka, Hideki and Aqissiaq had all dropped the fight, and were staring over the railing as ice extended from the shoreline, freezing the surface of the water mid-wave and encompassing the boat.

Hisoka dropped to the deck, relieved to find that he wasn't getting motion sick. He set Nashi's body down and charged at Shizuka. "Kawatatsu no Tekken!"

Shizuka turned and leaped out of the way just in time. Suddenly, Elkhart came to his senses and also began attacking Shizuka.

Something hot hit Hisoka in the side, sending him sprawling, and he stumbled to his feet to see Hideki.

"I guess I can fight now," Hideki noted, grinning. "Goukaryuu no Tekken!" He charged at Hisoka with a flaming fist, but Hisoka just blocked it.

"And I have Nashi's powers. Ensenryuu no Tekken!" Hisoka swung a watery fist at Hideki which combined with some flame, turning into a burst of steam. The blow itself passed through Hideki, but Hisoka could tell he had been hurt by the steam. "Fire can't hurt me now."

"Impact, on the other hand…" Hideki swung again, this time merely using his flames for thrust as he punched Hisoka in the chest.

Hisoka's eyes widened, and he let out a breath of air as he felt the blow to his old stab wound. He maintained his footing, but stumbled back a few steps, breathing quickly and shallowly.

"Did I hit you in a sore spot?" Hideki inquired. "Shame." He raised his arm for another blow.

Suddenly, a dark shape shot between them, and Hideki's eyes widened as three tears in his clothes, as well as three gashes to go with them, appeared on his stomach. The dark shape shot through once again, this time touching down and revealing itself to be a black demon with clawed hands and feet, as well as a pair of batlike wings. They wore a familiar plaid shirt with a short tie.

Hisoka looked at the familiar face in surprise. "Eallesander?"

"Hey, Hisoka." Eallesander turned back to Hideki. "So who's your friend?"

"That's an enemy. Feel free to kill him."

Eallesander swiped at Hideki, who turned his body to flame. Then Eallesander tried freezing the air within his space, but he continued to flicker around it.

 _Nashi,_ Hisoka projected. _You doing okay?_

No response.

Hisoka turned and saw that the sheep symbol on Nashi's arm had gone out, while the horse symbol was flickering weakly. "Nashi!" He dropped down to his knees. "Elkhart! Stop fighting and get over here now!"

"I can't!" Elkhart called back.

"Eallesander! Can you take care of them both?"

"I think so," Ealles replied.

"Fine!" Elkhart jumped back from Shizuka, who tried going after him, but her water attack froze as Eallesander swiped at it. He skidded on his knees, coming to a stop at Nashi. Hisoka touched Elkhart and closed his eyes for a moment. "Well?"

Hisoka looked up at Elkhart, tears of despair forming in his eyes. "B negative."

"Is that a bad thing?"

"Nashi is O positive. She can only receive from type O."

Elkhart looked down at Nashi, then back up at Hisoka, the same despair filling his eyes. "I'm sorry…"

* * *

…

 **Don't you just love a good cliffhanger?**

…

 **Well… uh… hope you enjoyed!**


	48. Dragon Egg Arc - Loss is Inevitable

"I'm sorry…" Elkhart began.

"It's not your fault," Hisoka choked. He began trembling, both from the cold and because his muscles were weakening from his emotions. He looked down at Nashi's arm just as the horse symbol flickered out.

Just then, Eallesander was knocked back, slamming into the railing, and Hideki came in for a strike on Elkhart.

"Shinkuryuu no Kenkaku!" A large red streak came down and knocked Hideki off his feet, sending him crashing into the opposite railing. He stood up with noticeable difficulty, grunting in pain and then looking up at Akane.

"Well, if it isn't the Crimson Death himself."

"I really hate that name," Akane complained. "I'm not a huge fan of killing." Suddenly, he let out an _oof_ as he was yanked backward and landed flat on his back. He looked up to see Hisoka staring up at him.

"Akane, I need your blood."

"What? Why?" Akane sat up, and his eyes fell on an extremely pale Nashi. "Oh."

Hisoka grabbed Akane's arm and sliced it open with a small water saw. "You're the only other person I know with type O blood." He did the same thing with Nashi, then held his hand over both cuts, causing Akane's blood to seep out and fly over to Nashi, where it was then pushed through the opening in her veins.

"Goukaryuu no Houkou!" A torrent of flame rushed toward them, but was blocked by the sudden appearance of Henri with her adamantine shield.

Henri looked back. "Are you alright, Hisoka?"

"Hisoka… she's still giving off brainwaves, right?" Akane asked.

"I'm not sure. The sonic boom damaged my ears. But I have to try!" Hisoka continued to draw the blood from Akane into Nashi, stopping when he saw Akane beginning to look pale himself. He healed the cuts, then turned to Nashi and placed a hand over her heart. "Please, Nashi. We can't have you dying on our first job with the team." He put his other hand on his own heart, getting a feel for his own heartbeat, then channeled the rhythm through his other arm into Nashi, willing her heart to follow the beat. He was relieved to feel a beat starting back up, but kept going, making sure the blood was pumped evenly throughout her system.

Akane stood up, his work with Nashi done, and leaped over Henri's shield, immediately taking another breath attack from Hideki and being engulfed in flames. Suddenly, he sucked all the flames in, catching Hideki by surprise.

Hideki took a few steps back, knowing that this could get dangerous as Akane's entire form burst into bright red flames.

"Double Element Mode: Crimson Flame Dragon!"

"Not if I have anything to say about it!" Shizuka pointed a drill of pressurized water at Akane, and it sped forward, but was blocked by a pair of crossed steel swords as Emma and Merlin jumped into the fray.

"Shinkuenryuu no Tekken!" Akane charged at Hideki, his attack passing through. However, as Hideki rematerialized, a burn appeared on his torso.

Hisoka ignored all of this as he aligned Nashi's heartbeat with his own. Then he placed both his hands against the center of her chest and started pushing, trying to jumpstart her breathing. "Come on…" He parted her lips and took a deep breath. _Don't you dare be nervous about this, Hisoka,_ he said to himself. _You're saving her life. This isn't what you're making of it. You're a healer; it's what you do._ Without hesitating, he ignored these thoughts and pressed his open mouth against hers, blowing some of his air into her lungs. Then he sat back up and repeated the process, pressing and blowing a few more times, then held a hand above her mouth and nose to feel a rhythmic puff of air. He gave a sigh of relief, then felt his face heating up as he began to process what he had just done.

"Is that a baby dragon down there?"

Hisoka turned to see Eallesander, who had shifted back to their human appearance and was now staring down the hole, and he crawled over to join them, staring inside to see a small blue wyrmling that was now shifting its gaze from Eallesander to him. "Yep," he confirmed. "And you just declared yourself her mother."

"Wait… what?!" Eallesander jumped back and crawled over to the railing. "But I didn't do anything."

"You were the first living face it laid eyes on," Hisoka explained. "It wasn't my idea."

"Well, she's going to be very disappointed. Because I'm not really available for parenting."

Hisoka looked up at Eallesander. His ears were still healing, so he still couldn't hear brainwaves, but he did see some more obvious things. "Where's your guildmark?"

"I'm not talking about it." Eallesander sprouted their wings and took a dive at Shizuka, freezing one of her attacks once again.

Suddenly, everyone's attacks except Eallesander's dispelled, with all water splashing onto the deck, and Emma and Merlin's weapons breaking clean off. Everyone looked to see a massive rune barrier surrounding the boat, then William climbing up onto the deck.

"No magic may be used within these walls," William stated as she walked into the middle of everything.

"Good thing I don't use magic." Liquid nitrogen began to pour from Eallesander's hand and boil off.

"I wouldn't if I were you." Aquissiaq climbed up from belowdecks, carrying the wyrmling, which started crying and struggling as it saw Eallesander. "Maybe you should melt all this ice you made before your precious child freezes to death."

"I can warm her up myself." Eallesander took a step forward.

"Ah-ah," Aqissiaq scolded. "I wouldn't fight over a hatchling if I were you. They're very easy to kill by accident."

Eallesander stopped in their tracks.

"Don't do it, Ealles," Hisoka pleaded. "They win. We failed the mission."

Eallesander took one last look at the hatchling, who was getting visibly weaker from the cold. Their eyes began to water with sadness.

"Get off of our boat and melt the ice," Shizuka demanded. "And don't even try to attack us again. You know what could happen.

Hisoka picked up Nashi, while Akane, Henri and Thomas took care of the Redfox siblings. Then they and Elkhart flew off of the boat, while Eallesander stayed behind and melted the ice. Eventually, Hideki began showing signs of motion sickness. The boat sailed out of the rune barrier and Aqissiaq immediately went to him.

* * *

Nashi opened her eyes to see Hisoka staring down at her. She groaned and tried pushing herself up, then realized that the arm she was trying to use had been immobilized. She used the other arm and managed to sit up, still feeling nauseous.

"The score's five to three, my favor," Hisoka informed her.

"Where's the egg?" Nashi asked.

Hisoka stared frustratedly down at the ground. Nashi looked around to see the others doing the same, and noticed that Eallesander was present.

"What happened?"

"We failed the mission," Merlin replied. "The egg hatched, but we had no way of guaranteeing the hatchling's safety if we didn't leave."

Nashi clenched her fists with frustration. She wanted to go after them, but she remembered why Hisoka had stopped her last time.

"Nashi…" Hisoka began, as if sensing what she was thinking about. "…I'm sorry I kicked you in the stomach."

Nashi sighed. "I wish you could have accepted it the first two times I forgave you. It was for a good reason. Not saying what you did was completely fine, though. You do need to be more careful." She looked around. "Wait… where's Torden?"

"We left him back in New Extalia to recover," Elkhart replied. "He took a dose of catnip, which apparently affects dragons more strongly than cats."

Nashi nodded in acknowledgement, and there was a moment of silence.

Then Eallesander got up, immediately followed by Emma, who strode over to them. "Where the hell have you been?" she demanded. "Everyone back at Sabertooth has been worried sick."

Eallesander looked away, not responding.

"And where's your guildmark?"

Eallesander looked up into Emma's eyes while everyone else watched them. Then they sighed and placed a hand on Emma's shoulder. "I want you to know that I have enjoyed every moment I spent with you. Tell the others in Sabertooth that I absolutely loved being in their guild. Can you do that for me?"

"Are you…?"

Before Emma could get another word out, Eallesander spread their wings and shot off.

"Ealles!" Emma screamed. "Don't you dare just drop out of everyone's lives like that, ya hear? Get back here right now!" Tears began to form in her eyes. "You can't just…" She broke off, not knowing how to end that sentence, and dropped to her knees, sobbing. "I just… found you… don't…"

The twins stood up and walked over to their older sister, comforting her.

"Will…" Emma sniffed. "…can you… have you ever… tracked… a demon…?" She continued to sit there, trembling. "I have a bad feeling about this. They've been missing for a month, and now they just said their goodbyes, as if we're never seeing them again."

William nodded. "I think if we go back to get Torden, the scent will still be fresh enough for me to pick up. He's probably recovered, and we could use his help."

* * *

 _November 24, X812_

"This is ridiculous."

"What?" William asked.

"I am thoroughly dumbfounded that your sense of smell is this good," Hisoka said.

William glanced around the igloo walls, then went to warming her hands over the fire. "Well, if there had been a blizzard recently, things might be a little different."

"We've been hiking through the arctic for two months," Hisoka added. "There are a lot more factors than just blizzards."

William shrugged. "I guess certain things tend to linger in the cold. I will say it's too bad Torden couldn't come along." She looked around the inside of the igloo at the team, as well as Elkhart and the Sabertooth members who had come with them. Elkhart, Akane and Jonah were still asleep, while everyone else was sitting around the fire.

"Well, I can't repair bones, and Torden's too large for Wendy alone to heal him."

"Not to mention he's not cut out for cold weather."

"Oh, by the way, Nashi…" Emma looked over at Nashi with a grin. "Something I forgot to mention. When you were unconscious back on the boat, Hisoka kissed you."

Both Nashi and Hisoka turned bright red.

"First of all, that was nearly three months ago," Hisoka testified. "I'm astounded you're even still thinking about it. Also, it wasn't a kiss. It was mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. Surely you've heard of it?"

"Sure I have," Emma replied. "It was how my parents had their first kiss."

Hisoka slapped himself on the forehead, which was muffled due to the glove he was wearing. "It's not kissing. It's a matter of saving somebody's life."

"Yeah. It's kissing to save somebody's life."

"Right…" Nashi muttered, clearly flustered by the subject.

"Would you stop teasing them?" William requested.

Emma's playful grin turned into a frown, and she stared at the fire. "Right… sorry, guys. I just want some way to be cheerful."

Merlin reached over and placed a hand on her shoulder. "We understand. And we will find them. I promise."

"Besides, you're not the only one," Carli added. "Remember yesterday's snowball fight?"

Hiromi shuffled back guiltily. "Sorry for starting that."

"Nobody blames you," William reassured. "We needed to blow off some steam."

"I personally think it was great practice for Hisoka's ice-controlling skills."

"I did not enjoy dealing with everyone's frostbite," Thomas complained. "There's such a thing as too cold for snowball fights, you know."

"Hey, frostbite is pretty hard to heal," Hisoka agreed. "I think we'll be okay, though."

The others began stirring.

"Well, looks like it'll be time to go soon," William declared. "I'll pack my stuff."

* * *

The group trudged across the dark, snowy landscape. The exceeds were resting on their companions' shoulders, unable to fly any longer.

"We're almost there," William reassured. She took a few more steps, then dropped to her hands and knees.

"Let me carry you," Akane suggested. "You can direct us from my back."

William nodded and carefully climbed onto Akane's back as he lowered himself to make it easier. Then Akane stood up.

Merlin peered through the slowly increasing snowfall and saw a dark shape in the snow. He started to run ahead, or what equated to running while dressed in thick thermal wear in knee-deep snow.

"Merlin, wait!" Hisoka shouted. He began running after him, followed by the others. "What do you see?"

Merlin continued running for a while longer, before coming to a stop. The others caught up to him, Akane and William lagging behind.

"Merlin," Emma began, "what did you…?" She stopped and stared with surprise. "Ealles…"

Sitting in the snow, in their normal outfit, not even dressed for the weather, was Eallesander.

The demon turned and gave them a surprised look. "How…?"

"Never underestimate my nose." William got down from Akane's back and waded through the snow towards Eallesander.

"You shouldn't be here," Eallesander pleaded.

"What is your deal?" Hiromi demanded, wading over to them. "You disappear on us, remove your guildmark and give your last farewells without so much as an explanation? I thought we had great times together. I thought you loved being in Sabertooth!"

"I did," Eallesander protested. "I loved every minute of it. But that's no longer an option."

"What do you mean?" Carli inquired, following Hiromi. "If we're never seeing you again, after all that, we deserve an explanation."

"You want an explanation?!" Eallesander snapped. "There's a solar eclipse here in a few minutes, and it will return me to the time I came from. I thought I could escape the past, but it's just pulling me back. Literally. It almost did back in May. This time, though, I won't be able to stop it!"

"What?" Emma went over to Eallesander. "Ealles… are you… a time traveler?"

Eallesander was about to reply, when suddenly, their eyes widened, and there was a pulse emanating from their body.

"Are you alright?" Emma knelt in the snow and placed her hands on Eallesander's shoulders.

Eallesander continued to sit there, pulsing, as Elkhart, Akane and William approached them out of concern. Suddenly, everything around Eallesander, including the people near them, seemed to turn red and become further away, even though they weren't moving. They eventually disappeared, at which point a flash of light engulfed the others, knocking them off of their feet and sending them through some kind of void. Then the light subsided and they tumbled to the ground in a hot, grassy area.

Hisoka stood up and immediately began ripping off his cold-weather clothes. He looked around and could only see Nashi, Merlin, Jonah and the exceeds, then noticed that they all seemed frozen. He turned to see a familiar face.

"We meet again," Ultear greeted.

"Indeed we do," Hisoka replied. "Any idea where we are?"

"Not really," Ultear replied.

They stood in awkward silence for a moment.

"Say, any idea what I did in the future?" Hisoka asked.

"I'm not certain," Ultear responded. "Clearly, it's something that messes with time, which is why we're getting these ripples. This one just happened in response to a spacetime anomaly."

"This is a spacetime anomaly?"

Ultear nodded.

"Ultear… did we… travel in time?"

"Not quite," Ultear replied. "And not really in space either. Nevertheless, it is a spacetime anomaly."

Hisoka was about to say something else, when the scene around him suddenly shifted to that of a destroyed building, with a few people struggling through the wreckage, as well as a couple of dead bodies Hisoka couldn't make out. What he could see was a tattered flag with the Fairy Tail guildmark. Then the scene shifted back to the grassy field. He took a few steps back out of shock. "What was that?"

"You tell me," Ultear suggested. "It's your future." She vanished, and Hisoka looked around him to see his friends getting to their feet and removing their winter clothes.

Merlin looked around, and his eyes began to widen with shock.

"More importantly, where are we?" Jonah pointed out.

Hisoka glanced across the plain and saw a grayish road. Suddenly, a foul smell hit his nose, and he gagged, desperately trying to wave it off.

"It's surprisingly hot," Nashi noted.

Hisoka looked down the strange road and saw a strangely shaped four-wheeler approaching them with a flattened back. Suddenly, he remembered what this smell was. "Those are the same gasoline-powered four-wheelers they had in Edolas!" He exclaimed. "Except… this one looks a little more metallic."

"Intriguing," Thomas noted.

* * *

Eallesander opened their eyes. Around them were stars. They didn't twinkle due to the lack of atmosphere. They looked down at the blue, green and white ball towards which they were now plummeting. They looked around them, and their eyes widened with surprise and fear.

Floating nearby, barely conscious and covered in a thin layer of frost, were Akane, William, Elkhart, Emma, Carli and Hiromi.

* * *

 _Our first job._

 _I'm sure you remember that, Rika. It was our first job as a full team. It's just too bad we didn't defeat my former friends that day. That would have made finishing the job far easier. However, it did lead us on a series of misadventures that I would never undo. And as for that bond we made? I think it will make it unhealthy for us to stay apart for too long. Then again, maybe we're both training to stand alone. And I know you don't want me to bring this up, since it's been nearly a year and a half, but I'm really sorry I kicked you in the stomach. Anyway, take care._

 _Sincerely, Hisoka_

* * *

 **I never expected to write a chapter this short. Please forgive me. Also, this is the end of the arc, and I am unfortunately taking another hiatus as I deal with school. I will, however, keep you posted. Hope you enjoyed!**


End file.
